by Peter Werbe
Black and Red
2/2021, paperback
SKU: 9781948501118
The temperature is scorching in Detroit during the summer of 1967 and so is everything happening in this fictionalized memoir by a staff member of the Fifth Estate. The characters are thrust into tumultuous episodes of 1967 Detroit Rebellion, anti-war demonstrations, fighting fascists, rock and roll, drugs, anarchism, the White Panther Party, Wilhelm Reich, and a bomb plot that provide “a people’s history and radical folklore of Detroit.” The setting is seven weeks in a critical year that demands ethical choices by all involved, ones which mirror today’s crises.
Reviews:
"Peter Werbe brings a journalist's keen eye and a revolutionary's spirit to this novel about war, retribution, and revolution. he never lets us forget that freedom is forged through friendship and solidarity. Informative and entertaining, Summer on Fire burns bright." Cara Hoffman, award-winning author of Running and So Much Pretty
Summer on Fire's story of a short time in the lives of a few friends intersperses real events and places with more than a little fabrication in the best tradition of yarn-spinning, capturing the essence of the whirlwind 1960s." -Marius Mason, anarchist, environmental and animal rights activist, serving 22 years in federal prison for defense of the planet
About the Author:
Peter Werbe is a member of the Fifth Estate magazine's editorial collective. His professional career included hosting WRIF's Nightcall, the longest-running talk show in radio history. he was also a DJ on Detroit rock stations WCSX, WWWW, and WABX. He lives in the Detroit area.