July 20, 2004 Author and Journalist Larry Tye to Discuss "Rising From the Rails" on August 2

Larry Tye will discuss his widely-praised new book, "Rising from the Rails: Pullman Porters and the Making of the Black Middle Class" (Henry Holt, 2004), at the Library of Congress at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 2, in the sixth-floor Montpelier Room of the Library's Madison Building, 101 Independence Ave. S.E., Washington, D.C.

This free event is part of the Center for the Book's "Books & Beyond" author series, which has brought authors of new books to the Library for presentations since 1996. Co-sponsored with the Library's Manuscript Division, which aided Tye in his research, the program is free and open to the public. A book signing will follow the talk.

"Rising from the Rails" explores the 100-year history of the black men who worked on George Pullman's railroad sleeping cars. The book discusses how the men launched the first successful black trade union, helped launch the civil rights movement and gave birth to today's African-American middle class.

Calling "Rising from the Rails" "sometimes romantic and always fast-paced," Library Journal said that "Tye's work is worth the ride for its comprehensive survey of a topic that deserves much attention."

Rep. Jesse L. Jackson Jr. said, "This book brings to life the stirring story of the civil rights legacy of A. Phillip Randolph and Pullman porters, which is an inspiration to those of us following in their footsteps."

Larry Tye runs the new Health Coverage Fellowship, which is designed to help the media cover critical health care issues. From 1986 to 2001, Tye was a reporter at the Boston Globe, where he covered medicine, the environment and sports and carried out several investigative assignments. He also won a series of national reporting awards and was a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University in 1993-94.

Tye's first book, "The Father of Spin: Edward L. Bernays and the Birth of Public Relations" (2001), was the basis of two National Public Radio shows and a multipart BBC series on Bernays and his uncle, Sigmund Freud.

The Center for the Book was established in 1977 to use the Library of Congress' resources to stimulate public interest in books and reading. For information about the center and the activities of its affiliates in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., visit the center's Web site at www.loc.gov/cfbook.