X: A Novel
a novel
Readers rate it 3.8 (9 on Hardcover)
385 pages · Released Jan 6, 2015 · Candlewick
Content report card
X: A Novel parent’s guide: what’s inside
LGBTQ+ themes
What it offers
Educational value
A note for parents
This historical fiction based on Malcolm X's early life is a well-regarded YA novel that tackles serious themes including racism, poverty, and criminal activity with nuance and purpose. The content reflects the protagonist's real struggles—crime, drugs, urban violence—but frames them as destructive rather than glorifying them, culminating in his spiritual transformation. Best suited for mature teens who can engage with difficult historical and social realities and understand the redemptive arc.
Analyzed by AI · 1 month ago
Read it with your kids?
Rate it and suggest an age to help other parents.
From the publisher
A 2016 Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book Cowritten by Malcolm X’s daughter, this riveting and revealing novel follows the formative years of the man whose words and actions shook the world. Malcolm Little’s parents have always told him that he can achieve anything, but from what he can tell, that’s a pack of lies—af... A 2016 Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book Cowritten by Malcolm X’s daughter, this riveting and revealing novel follows the formative years of the man whose words and actions shook the world. Malcolm Little’s parents have always told him that he can achieve anything, but from what he can tell, that’s a pack of lies—after all, his father’s been murdered, his mother’s been taken away, and his dreams of becoming a lawyer have gotten him laughed out of school. There’s no point in trying, he figures, and lured by the nightlife of Boston and New York, he escapes into a world of fancy suits, jazz, girls, and reefer. But Malcolm’s efforts to leave the past behind lead him into increasingly dangerous territory. Deep down, he knows that the freedom he’s found is only an illusion—and that he can’t run forever. X follows Malcolm from his childhood to his imprisonment for theft at age twenty, when he found the faith that would lead him to forge a new path and command a voice that still resonates today.
Shelved under
- Young Adult Fiction
- Young Adult
- Adventure
- Fiction
- African Americans
- Biography
- Black Muslims
- Juvenile fiction
- Racism
- African American Muslims
- Childhood and youth
- Poor
Books in the Malcolm X series
Full series in order →Share this guide
ISBN 9780763669676 · Candlewick