BOOKS
Curator Reviews
Rose McGowan
“I’ve had enough of someone else’s propaganda. I’m for truth, no matter who tells it. I’m for justice, no matter who it is for or against. I’m a human being first and foremost, and as such I’m for whoever and whatever benefits humanity as a whole.” - Malcolm X Luckily, I found this book in paperback when I was eleven. It is a book that should be required reading at a young age. Malcom X’s mind, struggle, fight, pain and truth will live on because this book will keep popping brains open. Look past the propaganda machine that reduces his role in history; there is a whole world of thought here, and that is a world I like to be in.
View Rose McGowan's Top 10 Favorite BooksAsif Kapadia
An inspirational, life changing book about an amazing personal journey. I first read it just as I was starting college, and I’d grown up in a pretty poor, rough part of London. At the time I was heavily into music by Public Enemy and loved Spike Lee’s Do The Right Thing. So listening to Chuck D and Spike Lee talking about Malcom X motivated me to search out the book as I wanted to learn about the man for myself.
View Asif Kapadia's Top 10 Favorite BooksGabrielle Union
Based on interviews with Malcolm X between 1963 and his 1965 assassination. The book explores Malcolm X's philosophies and his evolution. I've reread the book once a year since college and have found myself just as moved each time as the first reading.
View Gabrielle Union's Top 10 Favorite BooksMarcus Samuelsson
I was certainly intrigued by this book because of the topic — Malcolm X is a fascinating guy in the Black Rights Movement. However, what really makes me appreciate this book is the top-notch journalism that Alex Haley exhibited, putting together these stories of Malcolm X's. I think about this book whenever I am at Red Rooster, located appropriately on Malcolm X Blvd.
View Marcus Samuelsson's Top 10 Favorite BooksLeslie Odom Jr.
Found my Dad’s old copy in the basement when I was in seventh grade. I’ve read it many times since. It’s always a pleasure spending a few days learning from brother Malcolm. You can feel the depth of his care and his sincere hope for your survival in every page. If he wasn’t a friend and a hero before you started reading, you’ll have to make some room for him.
View Leslie Odom Jr.'s Top 10 Favorite BooksTom Perrotta
Is there a more American book than this bitter indictment of America? It’s a kind of Horatio Alger story, a small-time pimp and hustler educating himself in prison, undergoing a religious conversion, and reinventing himself as a fearless truth-teller and political firebrand. Malcolm’s voice is alive on the page from the very first sentence.
View Tom Perrotta's Top 10 Favorite BooksUzo Aduba
This is one of the most gripping books I’ve ever read. It’s inspiring to read the evolution of such an iconic figure in American history, and a sharp lesson on always going to the source if you truly want to know a person.
View Uzo Aduba's Top 10 Favorite Books