Malcolm X - Greenwood Biographies by Akwasi Assensoh & Yvette Alex-Assensoh Hardcover

About the Book

This fresh biography unearths previously unpublished nuances about Malcolm X's life.
Malcolm X: A Biography is a historical and political analysis of the black leader's life and times, offering a detailed treatment of its subject's multifaceted story. Laid out chronologically, the book treats Malcolm's life from his birth through his childhood, adult life, work as a Civil Rights activist, and assassination.

Readers will learn about the torching of Malcolm's family's Lansing, MI, home when he was a young child and about the death of his father a few years later--both acts attributed to a white supremacist organization. They will learn of his participation in narcotics, prostitution, and gambling rings and of his arrest and prison term. And they will learn about his discovery of the teachings of Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad, his conversion to the Muslim faith, his break with NOI, and his eventual espousal of faith in integration. Finally, the book looks at Malcolm's assassination and at his legacy and importance today.

• Photographs
• An exhaustive chronology

Book Synopsis

This fresh biography unearths previously unpublished nuances about Malcolm X's life.

Malcolm X: A Biography is a historical and political analysis of the black leader's life and times, offering a detailed treatment of its subject's multifaceted story. Laid out chronologically, the book treats Malcolm's life from his birth through his childhood, adult life, work as a Civil Rights activist, and assassination.

Readers will learn about the torching of Malcolm's family's Lansing, MI, home when he was a young child and about the death of his father a few years later--both acts attributed to a white supremacist organization. They will learn of his participation in narcotics, prostitution, and gambling rings and of his arrest and prison term. And they will learn about his discovery of the teachings of Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad, his conversion to the Muslim faith, his break with NOI, and his eventual espousal of faith in integration. Finally, the book looks at Malcolm's assassination and at his legacy and importance today.

Review Quotes

"Biographies are a staple of any school library, and, luckily, these titles in the Greenwood Biographies series make it easier for teens to discover noteworthy Americans, whether for academic or personal research. . . . The text notes Malcolm X's comparisons and contrasts to Martin Luther King Jr. and his lasting legacy in the civil rights movement and the ongoing struggle for racial equality." --Booklist

"Packaged full of information for its intended audience. Attractively bound, illustrated with photographs, and reassuringly short, it lays out succinctly and in an engaging style the facts, life, and beliefs of Malcolm X in chronological order." --ARBA

About the Author

A. B. Assensoh, PhD, is professor in the Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies at Indiana University, Bloomington, IN.

Yvette M. Alex-Assensoh, PhD, is dean of women's affairs and professor of political science at Indiana University, Bloomington, IN.