Shapiro Book Prize Lecture - “Serving Herself: The Life and Times of Althea Gibson”

The Huntington has awarded the 2025 Shapiro Book Prize to Ashley Brown for the biography "Serving Herself: The Life and Times of Althea Gibson" (Oxford University Press, 2023). The biennial prize, which includes a $10,000 cash award, honors an outstanding first scholarly monograph in American history and culture.

This year’s selection committee described Serving Herself as a story that operates on multiple levels, highlighting not only Gibson’s exceptional career as an elite athlete but also the broader complexities of sports integration and women’s pursuits of athletic careers. The committee noted that the book explores these themes against the backdrop of “the struggles of African Americans during the Great Migration and Civil Rights era.” Calling the work “history at its best,” the committee lauded Brown’s profound engagement with diverse archival materials.

About the Author
Ashley Brown, an associate professor of history and the Allan H. Selig Chair in the History of Sport and Society at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is the third recipient of the prize since its establishment in 2019 by The Huntington’s Shapiro Center for American History and Culture.

About the Shapiro Center
The Shapiro Center for American History and Culture advances scholarship, knowledge, and understanding of American history and culture—especially of the early republic and the nation’s founders and leaders. Established in 2019, thanks to the vision and generosity of L. Dennis and Susan R. Shapiro, the center engages both scholarly and general audiences. The center’s Los Angeles home offers a special opportunity to explore West Coast and global perspectives on the development of America and the genesis and evolution of national institutions.