“A compelling account. A perfect blend of well-written text and well-executed illustrations.” (School Library Journal starred review)

Award-winning author Walter Dean Myers, together with illustrator Leonard Jenkins, delivers a compelling portrayal of one of America's most influential Civil Rights figures.

Malcolm X lived by the idea that Black people should demand equality by taking their lives and futures into their own hands. With guidance from the religious leader Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm became one of the most powerful leaders of the Civil Rights movement during the 1950s and 1960s, and his beliefs live on today.

This nonfiction picture book is a strong choice to share in the classroom or home, and for book reports and research by young readers.

"We never can win freedom and justice and equality until we are doing something for ourselves!"

Malcolm X learned from his father that black people should demand equality by taking their lives and futures into their own hands. Malcolm believed in this idea. It was one he lived by.

Though Malcolm faced hard times growing up and even went to jail, he turned his life around. He read books and combined lessons he'd learned from his father and from the religious leader Elijah Muhammad. Soon Malcolm would become a powerful leader in the struggle for blacks to achieve equality.

Malcolm died tragically when he was only thirty-nine, but his beliefs live on today. Walter Dean Myers's evenhanded narrative and Leonard Jenkins's striking paintings celebrate the man and the fiery message he brought to all people of color.