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The Awakening of Malcolm X

A Novel

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

This program includes a bonus interview with the author.
The Awakening of Malcolm X is a powerful narrative account of the activist's adolescent years in jail, written by his daughter Ilyasah Shabazz along with 2019 Coretta Scott King-John Steptoe award-winning author, Tiffany D. Jackson.

No one can be at peace until he has his freedom.
In Charlestown Prison, Malcolm Little struggles with the weight of his past. Plagued by nightmares, Malcolm drifts through days, unsure of his future. Slowly, he befriends other prisoners and writes to his family. He reads all the books in the prison library, joins the debate team and the Nation of Islam. Malcolm grapples with race, politics, religion, and justice in the 1940s. And as his time in jail comes to an end, he begins to awaken — emerging from prison more than just Malcolm Little: Now, he is Malcolm X.
Here is an intimate look at Malcolm X's young adult years. While this audiobook chronologically follows X: A Novel, it can be listened to as a stand-alone historical novel that invites larger discussions on black power, prison reform, and civil rights.
A Macmillan Audio production from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
"
In this fictionalized biography of Malcom X's young adult life, written by his daughter, narrator Landon Woodson brings deep emotion to a man whose youth was fraught with injustice. Woodson transitions smoothly between Malcom's childhood/teens and his early 20s, evoking both the desperation and hope of a young Black man who could no longer stand for the unjust treatment of his people." — AudioFile Magazine

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    • AudioFile Magazine
      In this fictionalized biography of Malcom X's young adult life, written by his daughter, narrator Landon Woodson brings deep emotion to a man whose youth was fraught with injustice. Woodson transitions smoothly between Malcom's childhood/teens and his early 20s, evoking both the desperation and hope of a young Black man who could no longer stand for the unjust treatment of his people. Through vivid depictions of his brutal incarceration and the historically accurate use of racial slurs, Woodson expresses the emotions of men who were treated unjustly, bringing their shared humanity to the forefront. An interview with Shabazz and Woodson at the end of the audiobook provides added perspective to both story and narration. H.C. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from March 22, 2021
      This fictionalized account, penned by Malcolm X’s daughter Shabazz (Betty Before X) with Coretta Scott King–John Steptoe Award winner Jackson (Grown), recounts how Malcolm Little, the 20-year-old young man who would become civil rights icon Malcolm X, was convicted of a series of property crimes in 1946, after being framed by a white woman he was dating. Incarcerated first in Charlestown State Prison and then Norfolk Prison Colony, Malcolm experiences firsthand the treatment endured by Black men facing incarceration: dehumanization, violence, and brutal isolation. Enraged at the injustice of his circumstances and nurtured by family and fellow inmates, Malcolm is encouraged to liberate himself through knowledge and then conversion to Islam. Through these studies, Malcolm eventually comprehends the backbreaking plight of Black people in America and takes a stand against it. Unresolved subplots and a considerable time jump that glosses over a period of considerable change for Malcolm X undercut this otherwise thought-provoking narrative account. Still, Shabazz and Jackson effectively illuminate not only the figure’s religious and political awakening, but the injustice historically leveled against the Black community by mass incarceration and systemic racism. Ages 12–up.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

Languages

  • English

Levels

  • Lexile® Measure:650
  • Text Difficulty:2-3

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