Timely, 'poignant and powerful' ( Kirkus Reviews) The Butler also explores Eugene Allen and his family's background along with the history of African Americans in Hollywood and also features a foreword by the film's director Lee Daniels. But even as Allen witnessed the Civil Rights legislation develop, his family, friends, and neighbors were still contending with Jim Crow America. Johnson's work during the Civil Rights Movement and Ronald Reagan getting tough on apartheid. An African American who came of age during the era of Jim Crow, Allen served tea and supervised buffets while also witnessing some of the most momentous decisions made during the second half of the twentieth century, including Lyndon B. 13 from Dayton native Clarence Page, a Pulitzer Prize-winning syndicated columnist, journalist and Chicago Tribune editorial board member.This mesmerizing companion book to the award-winning film, The Butler traces the Civil Rights Movement and explores crucial moments of twentieth century American history through the eyes of Eugene Allen-a White House butler who served eight presidents over the course of thirty-four years.ĭuring the presidencies of Harry Truman to Ronald Reagan, Eugene Allen was a butler in the most famous of residences: the White House. The literary prize was inspired by the 1995 Dayton Peace Accords that ended the war in Bosnia, and celebrates the power of literature to foster peace, social justice and understanding. Supreme Court justice, and “Colorization,” a century-long look at the lives of Black actors, writers and directors in Hollywood. His other works include “Showdown,” about the nomination battle that Thurgood Marshall faced before becoming the first Black U.S. It was adapted into a 2013 film starring Forest Whitaker.

Haywood’s book “The Butler” is based on the life of Eugene Allen, who served eight presidents at the White House. This mesmerizing companion book to the award-winning film, The Butler traces the Civil Rights. “For three decades, Haygood has captured the sweep of American culture, focusing on the rarely or never-told stories of the Black experience with the analysis that this nation so desperately needs,” said Sharon Rab, founder and chair of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation. The Butler Audiobook by Wil Haygood, Forest Whitaker, Oprah Winfrey, David Oyelowo, Lee Daniels Official Publisher Page Simon & Schuster LOOK WATCH About The Book About The Author About The Readers Product Details Related Articles Resources and Downloads. Holbrooke Distinguished Achievement Award. The Dayton Literary Peace Prize announced Wednesday that Haygood - himself originally from Columbus, Ohio - will receive the Ambassador Richard C. Writer Wil Haygood, author of multiple nonfiction books chronicling the lives of 20th-century Black Americans including “The Butler,” has won a prestigious book award.

The Butler by Wil Haygood