Panther Baby

I just read this in 24 hours. You don't have much of a choice when you've blown your knee out and literally can't get off the couch.

Marie told me about this book a while back. I think she heard an interview with the author on NPR or something. I added it to my Amazon Wishlist and I picked it up for my birthday. Appropriately it was a giftcard from Marie that funded the book.

Panther Baby is by Jamal Joseph. It's an autobiography that focuses exclusively on Jamal's life as a Black Panther and in turn how that shaped his life. That's the angle.

Whether you're for or against the Panthers is irrelevant. This is obviously a quick, easy and enjoyable read. Got nothing to do on a Sunday? You can read all 280 odd pages no bother. Jamal weaves a good tale. It's well-paced. It's fast when it needs to be, yet slow and contemplative when the need arises. Jamal goes from being a fifteen year old virgin to a twenty-nine year old ex-con, ex-militant, ex-druggie. As well as an activist, poet, writer, counselor...

Jamal's led a pretty intense life and he tells it quite humbly, to be honest. I never got a feeling he was bragging about his deeds. He seemed pretty grounded after all he's been through.

I'd recommend you read this, my brothers and sisters of the revolution.