Malcolm Little: The Boy Who Grew Up to Become Malcolm X

Shabazz (Growing Up X) pays affectionate tribute to her father, Malcolm X, and his parents in this account of the activist's childhood, which relies on family lore to reimagine Malcolm's conversations and thoughts. The dense narrative mixes down-to-earth observations (Malcolm "was full of questions, a natural leader, and a fun-loving prankster") with sometimes protracted metaphors; among the lessons Malcolm learned from his mother's garden was that it "was an entire world of its own, where even the most sluggish of ladybugs and the fastest scurrying ants were all equally treated like esteemed and welcomed guests at a family Sunday brunch." What Shabazz relays more precisely is Malcolm's resolve to succeed and remain true to his parents' values after he loses his father "to the brute force of racism and the narrow-mindedness of the Ku Klux Klan," and his mother is deemed "no longer fit to care for her children." Ford's (My Daddy, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.) oil paintings render joyous and desolate moments with equal skill. Ages 5-10. Author's agent: Jason Anthony, Lippincott Massie McQuilkin. Illustrator's agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Jan.)

Gr 4-7--The author of this handsome, inspirational offering is Malcolm X's daughter-an educator, activist, and motivational speaker. Though the book does provide anecdotes from the subject's childhood, it is largely the story of Malcolm's parents, Earl and Louise Little, and how they helped shape their son's character and ideology. His mother was part of the Marcus Garvey movement and was dedicated to the idea of international freedom and equality. His father was an impassioned speaker: "his words had the power to move people, to make them laugh, cry, feel, and think." At the age of four, Malcolm and his family watched their house burn at the hands of people who disagreed with the family's beliefs. While young Malcolm is described as a mischievous prankster from a large, close-knit family, the haunting fire and traumatic events that followed left him "sad, lonely confused...broken." Still, Malcolm's story ends triumphantly in the seventh grade when he, the only African American at school, is elected class president. Ford's oil paintings are accomplished and historically accurate; images of the Littles courting and Earl preaching are painterly and realistic while images of the Little children are more stylized. Dense pages of text make this offering more suitable for upper-elementary or middle-school students.--Barbara Auerbach, New York City Public Schools