The Autobiography of Malcolm X (Malcolm X and Alex Haley)

I really do fantasize about creating a syllabus out of the books I've read lately, both fiction and non, that cover the spectrum of the African-American experience in somewhat chronological order. The Autobiography of Malcolm X would spark some amazing student essays, I'm sure.

The best way to describe this book is thought-provoking. I only had a very surface idea of Malcolm X and what he stood for, not even having seen the film about him, and I found him brilliant and surprisingly sympathetic.  His "militant" viewpoints (such as "all white people are the devil") are frankly understandable, especially when you've just finished reading about the history of slavery or you see around you how its effects persist to the present day.  I was far more sympathetic to him, even at his most extreme, than I expected to be, and I enjoyed hearing his viewpoints in his own voice, unfiltered.

You also see his ideas evolve and become more moderate towards the end of his life, which he seems to know is around the corner -- by the end of the book, the Nation of Islam basically has a price on his head, and not long after, he was assassinated. (I should note that his attitudes towards women evolve from "terrible" to "also terrible" but you can't have everything.) It would have been interesting to see how they would evolve further, and how he would have responded to today's movements such as Black Lives Matter. (He also would have approved of white folks getting involved in SURJ, I'm positive.)

I think this was a really worthwhile read. Also, Starr's father in The Hate U Give has a framed picture of Malcolm X on his wall, so my syllabus really has come full circle.  If anyone wants a suggested reading list and essay topics, do let me know! It would be a great class. :)