While becoming a writer, Bruce Watson worked as a factory hand, a journalist, a bartender, an office temp, a Peace Corps volunteer, and an elementary school teacher. As a frequent contributor to Smithsonian, Watson wrote more than 40 feature articles on subjects ranging from eels to Ferraris to the history of Coney Island. His articles have also appeared in The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Newsweek, Yankee, and The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2003. Bread and Roses was chosen by the New York Public Library as one of “25 Books to Remember in 2005.” Sacco and Vanzetti: The Men, The Murders, and The Judgment of Mankind” was a Book of the Month Club Selection and was nominated by the Mystery Writers of America for an Edgar Award. Watson holds a Master’s Degree in American history from the University of Massachusetts and lives with his wife and two children in Western Massachusetts.
"Bruce Watson brought the people and events of Freedom Summer to life for our students. Working with small groups of students, he recreated the conditions of 1964 and challenged them to make choices and plans as if they were SNCC-trained volunteers in Mississippi. Students peppered him with questions as they wrestled with how to work for racial equality in the face of such unspeakable violence and hatred. The evening lecture was well-attended and people were hungry for the personal stories Bruce Watson tells so well. "
-- Lynne Ford, College of Charleston
"We invited Bruce Watson to our campus as part of our One Book program. We read Freedom Summer and had a wonderful response from our students! They were filled with questions for Bruce and found him engaging and quite approachable. We had a great dialogue between the author and our students over lunch, where questions were asked and stories shared. As a result, some of our students, some well over the age of 18, voted for the first time this year! I would highly recommend both Freedom Summer and Mr. Watson! What an amazing opportunity for your students to learn about such important events that echo still today. "
-- Rebecca S. Funke, Des Moines Area Community Colleges
