The Ten Books That Have Had the Most Influence on Me

In no particular order**.

Assata Shakur: The Autobiography
I read this book in college. I remember we were on a tournament and staying in a hotel. My friend Wanda had given me this and Elaine Brown's book. I cried after having read them both.

Angela Davis:The Autobiography
It must have been my freshman or sophomore year of college when I read this book. I have always been in awe of Angela Davis and I completely devoured the book. It was quite profound.


A Taste of Power- Elaine Brown’s Autobiography
Elaine Brown was very much unknown to me before I read this book my sophomore or junior year of college. This book, along with the others on this list, added something to my makeup and to my understanding and grasp of the world as I understand it today. Elaine Brown truly is an inspiration.

Possessing the Secret of Joy—Alice Walker
My favorite book. Enough said.

Giovanni’s Room- James Baldwin
I first read Giovanni's Room at the end of my junior year of college. I adore Jimmy Baldwin and this book definitely imprinted itself upon my consciousness. James Baldwin is a God.

Zami: A New Spelling of My Name- Audre Lorde
I read this book in the same period in which I read Giovanni's room. Audre Lorde is a Goddess/Mother of the earth. This book completely shook my foundation to the core and made me much more completely whole.

The Glory and the Dream- William Manchester
I read this book the summer after my sophomore year of High School for the A.P. American History course I took my junior year. It was quite profound and really made history a living entity for me, perhaps for the first time.

The Souls of Black Folk—W.E.B. DuBois
I got this book from my Uncle Lawrence's House when I was either thirteen or fourteen. DuBois was the first person I had ever read that profoundly shaped and influenced my intellect.

I Wonder as I Wander by Langston Hughes
I recieved this book from my Uncle Donald when I was about thirteen or fourteen. Langston's account of his travels and his descriptions of people and places all over the world from China to Cuba to Tashkent had a profound effect on me.

Before the Mayflower: A History of Black America by Lerone Bennett Jr.
I also recieved this book from my Uncle Lawrence's house. Whenever I would visit him, he would send me off with a big box of books from his library. This was one of them. It is a great history text.

Also worthy of mention:

Sex and Race series by J.A. Rogers

** Any of it may change at any time.