A Shot in the Moonlight: How a Freed Slave and a Confederate Soldier Fought for Justice in the Jim Crow South

A Shot in the Moonlight: How a Freed Slave and a Confederate Soldier Fought for Justice in the Jim Crow South

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  • Create Date：2021-01-27 04:19:33
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Ben Montgomery
  • ISBN：9780316535540
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Summary

The sensational true story of George Dinning， a freed slave， who in 1899 joined forces with a Confederate war hero in search of justice in the Jim Crow south。 “Taut and tense。 Inspiring and terrifying in its timelessness。”（Colson Whitehead， Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Underground Railroad ）Named a most anticipated book of 2021 by O， The Oprah MagazineNamed a "must-read" by the Chicago Review of BooksOne of CNN's most anticipated books of 2021 After moonrise on the cold night of January 21， 1897， a mob of twenty-five white men gathered in a patch of woods near Big Road in southwestern Simpson County， Kentucky。 Half carried rifles and shotguns， and a few tucked pistols in their pants。 Their target was George Dinning， a freed slave who'd farmed peacefully in the area for 14 years， and who had been wrongfully accused of stealing livestock from a neighboring farm。 When the mob began firing through the doors and windows of Dinning's home， he fired back in self-defense， shooting and killing the son of a wealthy Kentucky family。So began one of the strangest legal episodes in American history — one that ended with Dinning becoming the first Black man in America to win damages after a wrongful murder conviction。Drawing on a wealth of never-before-published material， bestselling author and Pulitzer Prize finalist Ben Montgomery resurrects this dramatic but largely forgotten story， and the unusual convergence of characters — among them a Confederate war hero-turned-lawyer named Bennett H。 Young， Kentucky governor William O'Connell Bradley， and George Dinning himself — that allowed this unlikely story of justice to unfold in a time and place where justice was all too rare。

Editor Reviews

As he did in his spectacular reporting on the Dozier School in Florida， Ben Montgomery excavates another hidden strand of American history。 Taut and tense， A Shot in the Moonlight is inspiring and terrifying in its timelessness。”—Colson Whitehead， Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Underground Railroad and The Nickel Boys

“Ben Montgomery’s masterful retelling of George Dinning’s story reminds us that history is created by ordinary people who confront wrongdoing。 This is a powerful portrayal of prejudice at its most depraved， humanity at its most determined， and a judicial system that can， at its best， address injustice。  It reminds us of what to hope for in our current troubled times。”—Lois Lowry， author of The Giver

"A Shot in the Moonlight is a searing narrative， thoroughly engrossing and timelier than ever。 With remarkable journalism and meticulous research， Ben Montgomery has passionately crafted a masterwork of nonfiction。"—Gilbert King， Pulitzer prize-winning author of Devil in the Grove

"Ben Montgomery's A Shot in the Moonlight is a meticulously reported account that resurrects a remarkable story of race and justice that had been largely lost to history。 Like so many Black Americans throughout our nation's history， George Dinning demanded justice。 Unlike so many others， and after a strenuous battle that Montgomery expertly documents， he was ultimately able to secure it。"—Wesley Lowery， Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and author of They Can’t Kill Us All: Ferguson， Baltimore and A New Era in America's Racial Justice Movement

"Ben Montgomery has unearthed and vigorously reported the traumatic and important story of a Black man who had the courage to shoot back。 His storytelling and attention to time， context， and detail is nothing short of mesmerizing。 This is the feat of one of the best nonfiction writers in the world today。 A Shot in Moonlight is a challenge， a triumph。"—RJ Young， author of Let It Bang: A Young Black Man's Reluctant Odyssey into Guns

“True racial reconciliation requires that America take a hard and honest look at its past， and， to that end， A Shot in the Moonlight is essential reading。 Ben Montgomery brings his considerable skills as a writer and reporter to the story of George Dinning， a Black man who somehow survived vigilante violence and found justice in 1897 Kentucky。 More broadly， in his elegant narrative， Montgomery lays bare the horrors and indignities of the Jim Crow era that remain foundational to the pain of today。”—Tim Madigan， author of The Burning: The Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921

“A gripping feat of narrative non-fiction。。。This lavish， stellar work forces a reckoning with the grim aftermath of a civil war that still rages in hearts and minds today。”—O， the Oprah Magazine

“A nuanced exploration of the horrors Southern racism inflicted on Black citizens。。。Montgomery brings to light an important turning point in a grim chapter in American history。”—Booklist

“History buffs won’t want to miss this one…[A] must-read book of January”—Chicago Review of Books

“Terse and compelling。”—Savannah Morning News

From the Publisher

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Reviews

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Tracy ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 A fascinating book about former slave George Dinning's arrest， trial and acquittal in Kentucky during the late 1800's。 It seems impossible that a black man during this time period would get a fair trial nonetheless get set free， and what makes it even more incredible was the number of white men that helped make this happen。 The book used a contained a number of court transcripts to tell the story and that was interesting also。 It really put the reader right in the courtroom to follow along with A fascinating book about former slave George Dinning's arrest， trial and acquittal in Kentucky during the late 1800's。 It seems impossible that a black man during this time period would get a fair trial nonetheless get set free， and what makes it even more incredible was the number of white men that helped make this happen。 The book used a contained a number of court transcripts to tell the story and that was interesting also。 It really put the reader right in the courtroom to follow along with the trial。 All and all a very well researched and very interesting。 。。。more

Michelle ，

While I would have appreciated more exposition about the fascinating people- George Dinning， lawyer Bennett Young- who populate this volume，overall this was a fantastic read。I kept picturing the Dinning family （father George， mother Mollie and their 11 children） hearing the approach of 25 white men outside their home in the middle if the night for obviously no good reason。 What terror they must have felt。 Despite my fear of guns， I was relieved when I read of the backlash all across the nation a While I would have appreciated more exposition about the fascinating people- George Dinning， lawyer Bennett Young- who populate this volume，overall this was a fantastic read。I kept picturing the Dinning family （father George， mother Mollie and their 11 children） hearing the approach of 25 white men outside their home in the middle if the night for obviously no good reason。 What terror they must have felt。 Despite my fear of guns， I was relieved when I read of the backlash all across the nation against Dinning’s conviction for manslaughter for the accident death of Jodie Conn。 Dinning was clearly defending his home and his family against a mob， and it is hard to argue otherwise。The author mined numerous primary sources including the trial transcripts， first-person accounts and especially the often horrifying to read overtly bigoted contemporaneous newspaper columns。 We may not be all the way there， but the overt racism of this writing was hard to read。I listened to this as an audiobook， and it is wonderfully read by narrator Zeno Robinson with the author’s note read by the author himself。M 。。。more

Amanda ，

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a copy for review。 A Shot in the Moonlight follows the story of former slave， George Dinning， and his trial against the mob that tried to murder him in Jim Crow South。 Along the way he finds allies in some unexpected places， from the sheriff of the county， to Bennett Young， his lawyer， to the Governor of Kentucky。 I had a hard time putting this one down。 The tension throughout the story kept me turning the pages。 The Dinning case was the fir Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a copy for review。 A Shot in the Moonlight follows the story of former slave， George Dinning， and his trial against the mob that tried to murder him in Jim Crow South。 Along the way he finds allies in some unexpected places， from the sheriff of the county， to Bennett Young， his lawyer， to the Governor of Kentucky。 I had a hard time putting this one down。 The tension throughout the story kept me turning the pages。 The Dinning case was the first of its kind in the South。 A freed slave successfully fights his would be lynchers and wins in federal court。 The amount of research Ben Montgomery had to do is pretty impressive。 The fact that were so many first hand accounts just goes to show how much of an impact this case had on the nation。 I also found the dichotomy of his Confederate veteran lawyer to be interesting。 Here is a man who fought for the South in the war， then fought for statues of Confederate soldiers to be erected， while at the same time funded and helped operate multiple charities and foundations to help the Black community。 He took on cases for many Black people， including George Dinning， for free， and was viewed as a friend by the Black community in Kentucky。 This is definitely worth the read， if for no other reason then it shows how much has changed， and also just how little has changed。 。。。more

Sara Broad ，

One night around midnight， George Dinning's house is surrounded by a gang of white men who shoot into his house， and in return， Dinning fires back and kills one of the white gang members。 "A Shot in the Moonlight" details Dinning's trial and the efforts of one side to get him convicted through a false narrative of what really happened that night。 On the flip side， through the trial and once Dinning is convicted， he finds many surprising allies that fight for his freedom。 The amount of material t One night around midnight， George Dinning's house is surrounded by a gang of white men who shoot into his house， and in return， Dinning fires back and kills one of the white gang members。 "A Shot in the Moonlight" details Dinning's trial and the efforts of one side to get him convicted through a false narrative of what really happened that night。 On the flip side， through the trial and once Dinning is convicted， he finds many surprising allies that fight for his freedom。 The amount of material that Ben Montgomery was able to access to tell this story is pretty amazing。 The book is definitely worth a read。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=A Shot in the Moonlight: How a Freed Slave and a Confederate Soldier Fought for Justice in the Jim Crow South

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=A Shot in the Moonlight: How a Freed Slave and a Confederate Soldier Fought for Justice in the Jim Crow South&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,A Shot in the Moonlight: How a Freed Slave and a Confederate Soldier Fought for Justice in the Jim Crow South&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0