Customer Reviews

The Death and Life of Malcolm X (Blacks in the New World)

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Anyone who has read Alex Haley's "Autobiography of Malcolm X" would be interested in this account by Goldman. Notice the title puts the word "death" before "life". The author delves into the mystery connected with Malcolm's assassination and the resulting coverup of the facts. Issues with the Nation of Islam are also addressed in a non-bias approach. Goldman also intelligently presents his case as being qualified to write about Malcolm X, despite the fact that he is a white man. Although there is no "smoking gun" as to who was truly behind Malcolm's assassination, this book is a good read.

Reviewed by Dr. Abdul Salaam first health professional (Dentist) to join the Nation of Islam (1957), dentist to Malcolm X, Minister Louis Farrakhan and (The Honorable) Elijah Muhammad.

This book was for me one of the more thoughtful and clear expositions looking at a short segment of his life pre Malcolm X but focusing primarily on the last year and a half after Malcolm had left the Nation of Islam and a short time after his death that took a close look at his overall economic as well as his conjectured mental state during that time. The fact that Goldman was both a well respected journalist and a Whiteman who had known and was writing about Malcolm, in my opinion, produced a book of unusual insights and depth. Goldman was interviewed in the film An American Experience PBS documentary "Malcolm X Make It Plain" (a film containng segments from my collection on Malcolm and the Nation of Islam) to discuss his perspective on Malcolm. If anyone is still into the "Whiteman is the Devil" thing I suggest care be exercised by holding that bias in abeyance so as not to be blinded by that belief when reading the book. They may miss an important contribution to understanding Malcolm X. and the hardships he endured both in spite of and because of his fame. We all wear some kind of blinders as I tried to indicate in the chapter on "My Story" in my own soon to be released publication, Myths vs Realities, (The Honorable) Elijah Muhammad, the Nation of Islam and Malcolm X, an Islamic Perspective. We should always keep that in mind.

On all of the chapters what happen back then is still very alive today.