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4.47 AVERAGE
4.47 AVERAGE
now THIS is what you call an autobiography
- first of all, what a fucking life he led - his life experiences and the journey he went on was mad
- above all i think you have to respect the level of honesty on display on this book - i think that autobiographies, especially as they concern public figures are very concerned about “narrative creation” or “narrative control” if that makes sense but i would argue that this book doesn’t really fall into that category because of the way that it, very suprisingly for me, handled malcom x the public figure as very secondary to malcom x the person (I don’t think this makes sense to anyone but me) and because of this we don’t fall into the trap of trying to idealise or explain away the actions and politics of Malcom x - instead this is a brutally candid look at the life of a man who has lived such an eventful life
- the point is that this book serves as a very open and honest confrontation of the people that Malcom x has been and you have to respect the choice to not shy away from anything and to accept your mistakes and misgivings
- the difficulty that I’m having with rating this book is how much I’m supposed to/ how much it is right for me to allow my own politics and judgement of Malcom x influence my rating of this book
- because honestly, like with most political figures, I agree with a lot of what malcom x has to say but I also respectfully disagree with a lot of his stances too but I don’t think that the point of this book is to get you to agree with everything he says and I don’t think that enjoying this book means an automatic sponsorship of all of his views
- I was suprised by so much in this book - Malcom x has got to be one of the most influential political leaders of recent times and I think he’s also fallen victim to so many smear campaigns, from all sides, meaning that a lot of what he advocated for and stood for is so obscured and there was so much about him that I did not know
- I think one of the most interesting parts of this book for me personally was the anticipation of when the other shoe would drop when it came to Malcom’s relationship with Islam and the Nation of Islam - I think as a concept the Nation of Islam is so beyond fascinating and I wish I could go back to university to study it and Elijah Muhammad and all of these other Black Muslim leaders and I am so interested in now learning how many of their followers have become enlightened to “orthodox” Islam
- I think a big thing for me was how shocked I was at how central Islam was for Malcom x - I understand that it played a big role in his life and it’s how he became such a prominent figure, but I think it’s so interesting how he views his own career and how he focused in on his work with Elijah Muhammad when in reality, his popularity extended far beyond the black Muslims of America and a lot of what he has been remembered for also kind of exists beyond that world - but he doesn’t really go into that in this book, it’s not his focus/ or I suppose he doesn’t feel like that’s his story
- the early chapters in New York were so fascinating- they were definitely my favourite to read especially because I was so shocked that this was Malcolm x’s origin story that I was reading / when I knew the kind of man he was going to turn out to be, the juxtaposition position between that and his life in New York was so stark
- overall, I think this was good - It’s very insightful in a way that I appreciate so much
- first of all, what a fucking life he led - his life experiences and the journey he went on was mad
- above all i think you have to respect the level of honesty on display on this book - i think that autobiographies, especially as they concern public figures are very concerned about “narrative creation” or “narrative control” if that makes sense but i would argue that this book doesn’t really fall into that category because of the way that it, very suprisingly for me, handled malcom x the public figure as very secondary to malcom x the person (I don’t think this makes sense to anyone but me) and because of this we don’t fall into the trap of trying to idealise or explain away the actions and politics of Malcom x - instead this is a brutally candid look at the life of a man who has lived such an eventful life
- the point is that this book serves as a very open and honest confrontation of the people that Malcom x has been and you have to respect the choice to not shy away from anything and to accept your mistakes and misgivings
- the difficulty that I’m having with rating this book is how much I’m supposed to/ how much it is right for me to allow my own politics and judgement of Malcom x influence my rating of this book
- because honestly, like with most political figures, I agree with a lot of what malcom x has to say but I also respectfully disagree with a lot of his stances too but I don’t think that the point of this book is to get you to agree with everything he says and I don’t think that enjoying this book means an automatic sponsorship of all of his views
- I was suprised by so much in this book - Malcom x has got to be one of the most influential political leaders of recent times and I think he’s also fallen victim to so many smear campaigns, from all sides, meaning that a lot of what he advocated for and stood for is so obscured and there was so much about him that I did not know
- I think one of the most interesting parts of this book for me personally was the anticipation of when the other shoe would drop when it came to Malcom’s relationship with Islam and the Nation of Islam - I think as a concept the Nation of Islam is so beyond fascinating and I wish I could go back to university to study it and Elijah Muhammad and all of these other Black Muslim leaders and I am so interested in now learning how many of their followers have become enlightened to “orthodox” Islam
- I think a big thing for me was how shocked I was at how central Islam was for Malcom x - I understand that it played a big role in his life and it’s how he became such a prominent figure, but I think it’s so interesting how he views his own career and how he focused in on his work with Elijah Muhammad when in reality, his popularity extended far beyond the black Muslims of America and a lot of what he has been remembered for also kind of exists beyond that world - but he doesn’t really go into that in this book, it’s not his focus/ or I suppose he doesn’t feel like that’s his story
- the early chapters in New York were so fascinating- they were definitely my favourite to read especially because I was so shocked that this was Malcolm x’s origin story that I was reading / when I knew the kind of man he was going to turn out to be, the juxtaposition position between that and his life in New York was so stark
- overall, I think this was good - It’s very insightful in a way that I appreciate so much
Read this with an open mind and open heart. It's shocking how little has changed in 55 years.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
I didn’t expect him to be such a regular person. That’s a fatal flaw of mine, and then I’m constantly reminded: no one’s actually so special. Malcolm X was a young impulsive kid who got in trouble when unsupervised, punked around til he got caught, had a hardline religious conversion, was disappointed and eventually betrayed by a person he loved and relied on for guidance, he moderated his hardline stance when he got older, and was frustrated about the inefficiencies and injustices of the world because he was smart and saw them clearly. He got kind of muddled as he realized the world was bigger than most people knew. He devoted his whole self to his ideals and had to sort out the aftermath of being wrong after having been vocal.
I can relate to a lot of those feelings and frustrations, and I appreciate the framing in the context of history and the other movements that were going on at the time. I’m glad Alex Haley persisted in writing it.
I can relate to a lot of those feelings and frustrations, and I appreciate the framing in the context of history and the other movements that were going on at the time. I’m glad Alex Haley persisted in writing it.
Malcolm dictated his memoirs to Alex Haley towards the end of his life, as more and more enemies began to circle him with questionable allegiances to the religion Malcolm X dedicated the later part of his life to. In Haley's introduction, he describes Malcolm's increasing alarm as thugs appear ever-more frequently along X's incessant schedule.
That's the crescendo to lifelong threat, which a person like Malcolm X managed to live such a long time under the thumb of. Crawling out of the wreckage of a youth destroyed by the KKK, he grows up uncomfortably in the white midwest, finding language and swift glances an alienation compared to the hustle of street life in Roxbury, Boston. He underplays the difficulty in transitioning between the two, but through an anecdote about a girl whose downward trajectory he feels responsible for we are offered a glimpse of the colliding worlds the autobiography describes. X continues to observe and survive amongst an even more racially-divided New York City, building up some observations of the white man which would remain with him until his death; most notably in the carnal interplay between black women and white men, and societies inability to tolerate a role reversal.
In spite of Malcolm X's conversion to Islam, sex continues to play a dominant role in his attitudes towards whites. In prison, and afterwards, his autobiography focuses mostly on his devotion to his religion and master, and his commitment to his wife pops up occasionally. But his religion in essence is one situated as an opposition against a dominant aggressor, that being the white protestant ideology that prevails in the western world to this day.
Whether or not the overbearing flak he cites before his Africa tour is responsible for a rather abrupt attitude shift towards a more peaceful conclusion than 'the white man is the devil' will forever be a mystery, but his description of far less severed societies in Africa and - to an extent - Europe, are particularly engaging, and lead the book to a conclusion more suitable for hefty sales and a wide readership.
That's the crescendo to lifelong threat, which a person like Malcolm X managed to live such a long time under the thumb of. Crawling out of the wreckage of a youth destroyed by the KKK, he grows up uncomfortably in the white midwest, finding language and swift glances an alienation compared to the hustle of street life in Roxbury, Boston. He underplays the difficulty in transitioning between the two, but through an anecdote about a girl whose downward trajectory he feels responsible for we are offered a glimpse of the colliding worlds the autobiography describes. X continues to observe and survive amongst an even more racially-divided New York City, building up some observations of the white man which would remain with him until his death; most notably in the carnal interplay between black women and white men, and societies inability to tolerate a role reversal.
In spite of Malcolm X's conversion to Islam, sex continues to play a dominant role in his attitudes towards whites. In prison, and afterwards, his autobiography focuses mostly on his devotion to his religion and master, and his commitment to his wife pops up occasionally. But his religion in essence is one situated as an opposition against a dominant aggressor, that being the white protestant ideology that prevails in the western world to this day.
Whether or not the overbearing flak he cites before his Africa tour is responsible for a rather abrupt attitude shift towards a more peaceful conclusion than 'the white man is the devil' will forever be a mystery, but his description of far less severed societies in Africa and - to an extent - Europe, are particularly engaging, and lead the book to a conclusion more suitable for hefty sales and a wide readership.
“Early in my life, I had learned that if you want something, you had better make some noise.”
•••••
Malcolm X, the nation’s most visible proponent of Black nationalism. Through a life of passion and struggle, he became one of the most influential figures of the 20th century. From his prison cell to Mecca, Malcolm X talks about his transition from a hoodlum to a Muslim minister. The strength of his words and powerful ideas continue to resonate more than a generation after they first emerged.
•••••
This book was so profound! A lot of Malcolm’s points hold up in America today. A real seeker of knowledge and of truth. Malcolm was more than a militant civil rights leader. He was highly complex in a fascinating, admirable and simultaneously tragic human being. The general knowledge I was taught in high school about Malcolm X was such a disservice to his legacy. Reading about his journey was heartbreaking. His assassination was a testament to the strength of his wisdom and fame because the individuals who were threatened by him were hateful embodiments of a backward time.
•••••
Malcolm X, the nation’s most visible proponent of Black nationalism. Through a life of passion and struggle, he became one of the most influential figures of the 20th century. From his prison cell to Mecca, Malcolm X talks about his transition from a hoodlum to a Muslim minister. The strength of his words and powerful ideas continue to resonate more than a generation after they first emerged.
•••••
This book was so profound! A lot of Malcolm’s points hold up in America today. A real seeker of knowledge and of truth. Malcolm was more than a militant civil rights leader. He was highly complex in a fascinating, admirable and simultaneously tragic human being. The general knowledge I was taught in high school about Malcolm X was such a disservice to his legacy. Reading about his journey was heartbreaking. His assassination was a testament to the strength of his wisdom and fame because the individuals who were threatened by him were hateful embodiments of a backward time.
Despite the amount of words I usually splurge in my Goodreads reviews, I’m not deluded enough to think I have anything of any real value to add to an appraisal of this classic work so I’ll keep it brief. Malcolm X was- clearly- such an important and powerful figure and continues to be today. His autobiography is a fascinating read and his righteous anger, justified in the mid-60s and justified even now, is so very potently captured. What is most startling is his prophetic declarations in the final chapter- “1965”- about how he might be perceived upon his untimely death. Malcolm X would be assassinated just months after sharing these words with Alex Haley and that makes for a disturbingly ominous conclusion to this work.
I tried. The aggressive dismissal and distrust of women (even at the end! when he is reconsidering literally everything he has believed!) killed the whole thing for me.
When I am dead - I say it that way because from the things I know, I do not expect to live long enough to read this book in its finished form - I want you to just watch and see if I'm not right in what I say; that the white man, in his press, is going to identify me with 'hate'.
He will make use of me dead, as he has made use of me alive, as a convenient symbol of 'hatred' - and that will help him to escape facing the truth that all I have been doing is holding up a mirror to reflect, to show, the history of unspeakable crimes that his race has committed against my race.
Writing a review on such a famous book is like describing the Bible or the Quran in one paragraph.
I won't pretend I know much about race, being born into a 99,999% white country in Eastern Europe. I'm confused why, seventy years after the civil rights movement, we still need books teaching white people how to talk about race. Maybe, as Malcolm X thought, Martin Luther King Jr.'s non-violence and NAACP's battles in court were not enough. That's why in 2020, BLM appeared to white people as yet another attempt to disrupt the established racial (in)equality system. After all, America elected a black president. After all, black people received what they wished for during the civil rights movement. But, as Malcolm X pointed out, one desegregated cup of coffee can't do wonders.
The book, especially the second part of it, after Malcolm X's reborn into Islam, is a one-hundred-percent must-read. Malcolm X's approach as the angriest Negro in America who, many believe, preached violence contradicted the more popular Martin Luther King Jr.'s non-violence. After King Jr's death, white America wanted another calm-tempered black preacher to take his place. Nobody wanted another Malcolm X, though, in my opinion, his radical view would have produced more fruits in the long run. The segregation Malcolm X envisioned, with separate Black businesses, Black communities, and, as a result, the independent black states of America, could have been a basis for mutual respect and recognition between two races. The structural, invisible racism running through all societal spheres nowadays wouldn't be possible.
He will make use of me dead, as he has made use of me alive, as a convenient symbol of 'hatred' - and that will help him to escape facing the truth that all I have been doing is holding up a mirror to reflect, to show, the history of unspeakable crimes that his race has committed against my race.
Writing a review on such a famous book is like describing the Bible or the Quran in one paragraph.
I won't pretend I know much about race, being born into a 99,999% white country in Eastern Europe. I'm confused why, seventy years after the civil rights movement, we still need books teaching white people how to talk about race. Maybe, as Malcolm X thought, Martin Luther King Jr.'s non-violence and NAACP's battles in court were not enough. That's why in 2020, BLM appeared to white people as yet another attempt to disrupt the established racial (in)equality system. After all, America elected a black president. After all, black people received what they wished for during the civil rights movement. But, as Malcolm X pointed out, one desegregated cup of coffee can't do wonders.
The book, especially the second part of it, after Malcolm X's reborn into Islam, is a one-hundred-percent must-read. Malcolm X's approach as the angriest Negro in America who, many believe, preached violence contradicted the more popular Martin Luther King Jr.'s non-violence. After King Jr's death, white America wanted another calm-tempered black preacher to take his place. Nobody wanted another Malcolm X, though, in my opinion, his radical view would have produced more fruits in the long run. The segregation Malcolm X envisioned, with separate Black businesses, Black communities, and, as a result, the independent black states of America, could have been a basis for mutual respect and recognition between two races. The structural, invisible racism running through all societal spheres nowadays wouldn't be possible.