Look, that up there is the real review of The Autobiography of Malcolm X, because anything I have to say about the book is gonna pale in comparison to, y'know, the book. Which is crazy-good. But in case you want some scattershot high-level observations:
* I picked this one up on a stray recommendation from a friend, and because Malcolm X seemed like an Important Person TM who I should know more about. What I wasn't expecting was for it to also be a rollicking, breathtaking page-turner. From the moment I finished the first chapter I could barely put the thing down for how much I desperately needed to know what was going to happen next. And like, of course I knew how the story ended, but like with all good suspense, that's not the point—the pleasure is in watching the unfolding of this dude's mind, and the tension between what he's like in his childhood (then teenage years, young adult years, prison years, etc), and what he becomes.
* Also: I had no idea how much of a drug-slinging-illegal-lottery-running-generally-hustling-badass this guy was in his Harlem youth, haha. At one point he's recounting "oh here's all the musicians I sold weed to all up and down the east coast", and you can compare it to the Wikipedia list of "famous popular musicians at that time," and it's like... all of them, lol. I also had no idea how big a deal "the numbers" were, back before state lotteries were a thing; Malcolm damn near gets himself shot by a guy just because the guy thinks Malcolm tried to trick him with his numbers entry. Also, it's impressive to me just how many drugs you could get all messed-up on in the 40s—when Malcolm's in the middle of a rough spot, he decides to cope by doing All The Drugs, and there's a whole bit where he's like "so i did some cocaine, but then i'd done too much so I was feeling edgy, but that's fine, I just popped some benzos to balance it out, and then I was still feeling funny so I smoked a lot of weed, and then I tried some [insert crazy new drug slang word you've never heard of]," and you're like OH NO MALCOLM THAT IS A RATHER LARGE AMOUNT OF DRUGS I HOPE YOU'RE GONNA BE OK
* also, special props to Malcolm X's absolute genius scheme for dodging the draft, lmao. he shows up in a draft office, acts all gung-ho about joining the military, leans in to whisper at the draft officer and says "hey, you're a yankee, so you'll feel me on this—you're gonna be sure to send me south, right? cause i am ready to win the Civil War properly this time, we'll really show those whities what's what." malcolm is disqualified for psychological reasons like 3 seconds later. #gottem
* I'd be really curious for a concise accounting of the changes in US prisons between Malcolm's time and present times. Mal basically spends his whole time in prison reading nonstop, interspersed with rounds in the prison's debate team, and between those two things he gives himself an impressive education, which sets him up to become such a powerful leader once he's out. It's depressing to think about all the restrictions on prison libraries nowadays, and wonder if something like that is even possible anymore.
* I profoundly admire this guy's combination of curiosity and willingness to change his mind. Not on things that matter—he remains deeply critical/cynical of liberal/incremental reform as a means for justice, and he remains deeply committed to justice for his people, throughout—but the way he's always talking to people, reading more books, trying to understand better? and how he finally ending up all the way in Mecca, because he needs to understand stuff, and he lets his whole world get rocked by what he learns there? Not many people are willing to stare down their beliefs and face them honestly. Malcolm X is. What a dude.
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addendum: misc thoughts on the autobiography of malcolm x
Date: 2022-02-03 11:52 pm (UTC)* I picked this one up on a stray recommendation from a friend, and because Malcolm X seemed like an Important Person TM who I should know more about. What I wasn't expecting was for it to also be a rollicking, breathtaking page-turner. From the moment I finished the first chapter I could barely put the thing down for how much I desperately needed to know what was going to happen next. And like, of course I knew how the story ended, but like with all good suspense, that's not the point—the pleasure is in watching the unfolding of this dude's mind, and the tension between what he's like in his childhood (then teenage years, young adult years, prison years, etc), and what he becomes.
* Also: I had no idea how much of a drug-slinging-illegal-lottery-running-generally-hustling-badass this guy was in his Harlem youth, haha. At one point he's recounting "oh here's all the musicians I sold weed to all up and down the east coast", and you can compare it to the Wikipedia list of "famous popular musicians at that time," and it's like... all of them, lol. I also had no idea how big a deal "the numbers" were, back before state lotteries were a thing; Malcolm damn near gets himself shot by a guy just because the guy thinks Malcolm tried to trick him with his numbers entry. Also, it's impressive to me just how many drugs you could get all messed-up on in the 40s—when Malcolm's in the middle of a rough spot, he decides to cope by doing All The Drugs, and there's a whole bit where he's like "so i did some cocaine, but then i'd done too much so I was feeling edgy, but that's fine, I just popped some benzos to balance it out, and then I was still feeling funny so I smoked a lot of weed, and then I tried some [insert crazy new drug slang word you've never heard of]," and you're like OH NO MALCOLM THAT IS A RATHER LARGE AMOUNT OF DRUGS I HOPE YOU'RE GONNA BE OK
* also, special props to Malcolm X's absolute genius scheme for dodging the draft, lmao. he shows up in a draft office, acts all gung-ho about joining the military, leans in to whisper at the draft officer and says "hey, you're a yankee, so you'll feel me on this—you're gonna be sure to send me south, right? cause i am ready to win the Civil War properly this time, we'll really show those whities what's what." malcolm is disqualified for psychological reasons like 3 seconds later. #gottem
* I'd be really curious for a concise accounting of the changes in US prisons between Malcolm's time and present times. Mal basically spends his whole time in prison reading nonstop, interspersed with rounds in the prison's debate team, and between those two things he gives himself an impressive education, which sets him up to become such a powerful leader once he's out. It's depressing to think about all the restrictions on prison libraries nowadays, and wonder if something like that is even possible anymore.
* I profoundly admire this guy's combination of curiosity and willingness to change his mind. Not on things that matter—he remains deeply critical/cynical of liberal/incremental reform as a means for justice, and he remains deeply committed to justice for his people, throughout—but the way he's always talking to people, reading more books, trying to understand better? and how he finally ending up all the way in Mecca, because he needs to understand stuff, and he lets his whole world get rocked by what he learns there? Not many people are willing to stare down their beliefs and face them honestly. Malcolm X is. What a dude.