Nonfiction Review: Run Book One by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin

Title: Run Book One

Author: John Lewis and Andrew Aydin. Illustrated by L. Fury and Nate Powell

Year published: 2021

Category: Adult nonfiction, graphic narrative

Pages: 160 pages

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Location: (my 2025 Google Reading map): USA (AL, Washington, DC, GA, MS)

Summary: This follow-up to the #1 New York Times bestselling graphic novel series March is the continuation of the life story of John Lewis and the struggles seen across the United States after the Selma voting rights campaign.

To many, the civil rights movement was capped with the signing of the Voting Rights Act in 1965. All too often, the depiction of history ends with a great victory. But John Lewis knew that victories are just the beginning.

John Lewis was one of the preeminent figures of the movement, leading sit-in protests and fighting segregation on interstate busways as an original Freedom Rider. He became chairman of SNCC (the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) and was the youngest speaker at the March on Washington. He helped organize the Mississippi Freedom Summer and the ensuing delegate challenge at the 1964 Democratic National Convention. And he co-led the march from Selma to Montgomery on what became known as “Bloody Sunday.”

In Run, John Lewis and longtime collaborator Andrew Aydin reteam with Nate Powell—the award-winning illustrator of the March trilogy—and are joined by L. Fury, making an astonishing graphic novel debut, to tell this often-overlooked chapter of civil rights history.

Review: I have previously read and reviewed John Lewis' series March (links to my reviews here for March One, Two, and Three). It's great that the authors and illustrators continue the story of civil rights even though John Lewis has died.

Of course, we're getting John Lewis' version of events. Still, giving a singular voice, combined with historical information, is a way for people to connect to history, and that's why these graphic novels are so effective and well done.

One of the things I am reminded of repeatedly when reading about various movements, protests, and organizations of resistance is the infighting. People call for not enough violence or too much violence, or they cooperate too much with "the man" or not enough.

And the hatred thrown at SNCC and those who were trying to better lives for Black people in the US (and those who are still working on these issues) is abhorrent. Why do people hate so much? And conversely, bless those willing to fight and sacrifice so that others may flourish. Books like this frustrate me and also give me hope. I hope Aydin, Fury, and Powell continue the series now that Lewis has died.

Challenges for which this counts: