Ida B. Wells-Barnett, (1862 – 1931), was a crusader for African American civil rights and for equal rights for women.

Through newspaper articles, she wrote about discrimination she experienced and observed during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Historian Paula Giddings has captured the essence of the life of Wells in Ida: A Sword Among Lions, a new 2008 publication.

Giddings, a Smith College professor, has written two previous books: In Search of Sisterhood: Delta Sigma Theta and the Challenge of the Black Sorority Movement, and When and Where I Enter: The Impact Of Black Women On Race and Sex In America.

Her Wells biography is accurately documented as it rolls back the curtain on the fascinating odyssey of an American woman who fought for civil rights and justice.

Highly recommended.