A review by jennybeastie
Becoming Kareem: Growing Up on and Off the Court by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Raymond Obstfeld

5.0

Really stellar autobiography, one that illustrates Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's thoughtfulness, and the deep impact that the Civil Rights movement in America had on his personal development. It's extremely depressing to realize that all of the things he talks about from the 1960s -- race riots over the police killing Black children, casual racism and microaggressions, institutionalized racism, attacks on celebrities of color -- none of those have changed at all. He does an amazing job relating his personal story to the context of the history he's lived through, while talking about the hard work and dedication required to achieve extraordinary athleticism. His journey to Islam and to changing his name was particularly moving. It is a fairly slow paced book, but the work is worth the time.