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Angela Davis: An Autobiography (often simply titled An Autobiography) is a powerful political memoir by the renowned activist, scholar, and author Angela Y. Davis. First published in 1974 and edited by Toni Morrison (then an editor at Random House), it remains a classic account of the Black liberation movement, civil rights struggles, and resistance to systemic racism and political repression in the United States during the 1960s and early 1970s.

haymarketbooks.orgWhat the Book CoversWritten when Davis was in her late twenties, the autobiography is framed around her high-profile 1970–1972 ordeal: after guns registered to her were used in a deadly uprising at the Marin County Courthouse (linked to efforts to free the Soledad Brothers), she was charged with conspiracy, kidnapping, and murder, placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list, went underground, was arrested, imprisoned under harsh conditions, and ultimately acquitted by a jury in 1972.

supersummary.comIt flashes back to her childhood on “Dynamite Hill” in segregated Birmingham, Alabama (amid Jim Crow violence and Ku Klux Klan threats), her academic journey (including philosophy studies influenced by Marxism), her work as a UCLA professor targeted for her Communist Party membership, and her deep involvement in the Black Panther Party circles, the Che-Lumumba Club, and campaigns to free political prisoners like George Jackson.

haymarketbooks.orgTold with warmth, humor, brilliance, and conviction, the book emphasizes collective struggle over individual heroism. It highlights the intersections of racism, class oppression, sexism, and the prison system while advocating for political prisoners and broader liberation. Key themes include the carceral state, Marxist analysis in activism, community organizing, and the personal cost of resistance.

• Original: 1974 (Random House/Bantam), ~400 pages. goodreads.com
• Later reprints: International Publishers and others (including a 1988 edition with Davis’s new introduction).
• Current edition: Haymarket Books (ebook 2022; print May 2023). This beautiful reissue includes an expansive new introduction by Davis reflecting on its relevance today amid ongoing movements for racial justice, prison abolition, and radical change. It’s available in paperback (~$18–23), hardcover, and ebook formats. haymarketbooks.org

haymarketbooks.orgYou can find it at major bookstores, Haymarket Books directly (haymarketbooks.org), or libraries. It’s not just a personal story—it’s a call to understand and challenge the systems she fought (and still fights) against. If you’re looking for a specific summary of a chapter, quotes, analysis, or recommendations for related reading (like her later works such as Are Prisons Obsolete?), just let me know!

Angela Davis: An Autobiography eBook

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Angela Davis: An Autobiography Audiobook

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Learn More: Dr. Angela Y. Davis Studies Collection