Robeson: An American Ballad

Paul Robeson was a towering figure in American culture, conquering many disparate venues—from football and film to law to Shakespeare. An extraordinary athlete-scholar-actor-singer, Robeson also became a crusader for human rights. And though he was admired by many, his controversial support of the Soviet Union during the Cold War and the era of McCarthyism led to ostracism and his declining health.

In Robeson: An American Ballad, Arnold H. Lubasch chronicles the remarkable life of this twent...