Malcolm X's The Autobiography of Malcolm X was written in collaboration with Alex Haley author of Roots &
Includes:: an introduction by Paul Gilroy author of The Black Atlantic in Penguin Modern Classics From hustling drug addiction & armed violence in America's black ghettos Malcolm X turned in a dramatic prison conversion to the puritanical fervour of the Black Muslims As their spokesman he became identified in the white press as a terrifying teacher of race hatred; but to his direct audience the oppressed American blacks he brought hope & self-respect This autobiography (written with Alex Haley) reveals his quick-witted integrity usually obscured by batteries of frenzied headlines & the fierce idealism which led him to reject both liberal hypocrisies & black racialism Vilified by his critics as an anti-white demagogue Malcolm X gave a voice to unheard African-Americans bringing them pride hope & fearlessness & remains an inspirational & controversial figure Malcolm X (1925-65) born Malcolm Little in Omaha & also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz lost both his parents at a young age Leaving school early he soon became part of Harlem's underworld & in 1946 he was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment It was in prison that Malcolm X converted to Islam Paroled in 1952 he became an outspoken defender of Muslim doctrines formed the Organization of Afro-American Unity in 1963 & had received considerable publicity by the time of his assassination in 1965 If you enjoyed The Autobiography of Malcolm X you might like Nelson Mandela's No Easy Walk to Freedom also available in Penguin Modern Classics' This extraordinary autobiography is a brilliant painful important book' The New York Times