MALCOLM X

A fervent portrait of the controversial man who "put the hard edge on the [civil rights] movement" and "scared America" with his anger. The author sees most of Malcolm X's life as a search for self-respect; discouraged from reaching his full potential in school, he turned to the streets as a sharply dressed hustler but ultimately found more satisfaction in the Nation of Islam's sober living habits and revolutionary philosophy. A talented speaker and organizer, he grew into a leader, the voice of those who saw whites as the enemy and Martin Luther King's nonviolent tactics as either weakness or just too slow. A sense of outrage permeates Myers's book—at segregation and other social inequities; at our biased system of justice; at the FBI's close surveillance of black organizations (Myers is particularly offended by this, and returns to it repeatedly); at the way so many black leaders came to violent ends. The appearance of several recent biographies of Malcolm X—in the wake of the Spike Lee movie—signals a resurgence of interest in this disturbing, gifted figure; use Rummel's Malcolm X (1989) for historical background, but steer readers to Myers for a sense of the rage and frustration that fueled Malcolm X's brief career. (Biography. 12+)