They Called Themselves the KKK

YALSA Nonfiction Finalist, 2011

A thoroughly-documented, chilling history of one of the world’s most recognizable extremist groups, this is the true story of terrorism in America.

“Boys, let us get up a club.” With these chilling words, six restless young men raided the linens at a friend’s mansion, pulled pillowcases over their heads, hopped on horses, and cavorted through the streets of Pulaski, Tennessee. They called their new club the Ku Klux Klan, and it quickly grew into the self-proclaimed Invisible Empire, with secret dens spreading across the South.

Award-winning author Susan Campbell Bartoletti weaves together vivid personal accounts from oral histories, congressional documents, and diaries in this enlightening, surprising, and disquieting story, which has received a slew of starred reviews from Kirkus, Publisher’s Weekly, Booklist , and other esteemed publications. Her extensive research places the length of the Klan’s history into a larger context that sheds new light on the roots of hate groups.

When you purchase They Called Themselves the KKK , you’ll get exclusive bonus audio from a conversation with the author and Audie Award-winning narrator Dion Graham.