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Black Western Autobiographies and Biographies

The African American West in 20th and 21st Century History and Culture

Arizona

  • Charles Barkley, I May Be Wrong but I Doubt It (New York: Random House, 2003)

  • Charles Barkley, Outrageous!: The Fine Life and Flagrant Good Times of Basketball's Irresistible Force (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993)

  • Dennis Greenberger, Gene McGivern, Dennis Green, and Nicholas Copper-Lewter, Dennis Green: No Room for Crybabies (Champaign, IL: Sports Publishing, 1997)

 

California

  • Arthur Ashe and Arnold Rampersad, Days of Grace: A Memoir (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1993)

  • Arthur Ashe and Frank Deford, Arthur Ashe: Portrait in Motion (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1993)

  • Allen Barra, Mickey and Willie: Mantle and Mays, the Parallel Lives of Baseball's Golden Age (New York: Crown Archetype, 2013)

  • Marcus Allen and Carlton Stowers, Marcus (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1997)

  • Calvin Barry, Barry Bonds: Life and Career (Kindle) (Calvin Barry, 2012)

  • Charlotta A. Bass, Forty Years: Memoirs From the Pages of a Newspaper (Los Angeles: C.A. Bass, 1960)

  • Darrin Keith Bastfield, Back in the Day: My Life and Times with Tupac Shakur (New York: Ballantine Books, 2013)

  • Bijan C. Bayne, Elgin Baylor: The Man Who Changed Basketball (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2015)

  • John Bloom, Barry Bonds: A Biography (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2004)

  • Jake Brown, Suge Knight: The Rise, Fall and Rise of Death Row Records (Phoenix: Colossus Books, 2011)

  • Paul Bullock (ed.), Watts, The Aftermath: An Inside View of the Ghetto, By the People of Watts (New York: Grove Press, 1969)

  • Caron Butler and Steve Springer, Tuff Juice: My Journey from the Streets to the NBA (Guilford, CT: Lyons Press, 2015),

  • Tom Callahan, His Father's Son: Earl and Tiger Woods (New York: Gotham Books, 2010)

  • Roy Campanella and Jules Tygiel, It's Good To Be Alive (Boston: Little, Brown, 1995)

  • Robert Cherry, Wilt: Larger Than Life (Chicago: Triumph Books, 2004)

  • Wilt Chamberlain, A View from Above (New York: Villard Books, 1991)

  • Wilt Chamberlain and David Shaw, Wilt: Just Like Any Other 7-Foot Black Millionaire Who Lives Next Door, An Autobiography (New York: Macmillan, 1973)

  • Barry Denenberg, Stealing Home: The Story of Jackie Robinson (New York: Scholastic, 1990)

  • Jacqueline Edmondson, Venus and Serena Williams: A Biography (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2005)

  • Harry Edwards, The Struggle That Must Be: An Autobiography (New York: Macmillan, 1980)

  • Larry Fox, The O. J. Simpson Story: Born To Run (New York: Dodd, Mead, 1974)

  • Aram Goudsouzian, King of the Court: Bill Russell and the Basketball Revolution (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2011)

  • Simone Green, Time Served: My Days and Nights on Death Row Records (Boston: Golden Girls Publishing, 2015)

  • Verna Griffin, Long Road Outta Compton: Dr. Dre's Mom on Family, Fame and Terrible Tragedy (Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press, 2008)

  • Reggie Jackson, Becoming Mr. October (New York: Doubleday, 2014)

  • Reggie Jackson, Reggie: The Autobiography (New York: Villard Books, 1984)

  • Earvin Magic Johnson and William Novak, My Life (New York: Random House, 1993)

  • Gregory Jordan, Willie Mays Aikens: Safe at Home (Chicago: Triumph Books, 2012)

  • Hank Haney, The Big Miss: My Years Coaching Tiger Woods (New York: Crown Archetype, 2012)

  • James Earl Hardy, The Day Eazy-E Died (Los Angeles: Alyson Books, 2002)

  • Jerry Heller, Ruthless: A Memoir (New York: Simon Spotlight Entertainment, 2006)

  • Rickey Henderson and John Shea, Off Base: Confessions of a Thief (New York: HarperCollins, 1992)

  • Chester Himes, If He Hollers, Let Him Go (New York: Thunder's Mouth Press, 1945), and Lonely Crusade (New York: Thunder's Mouth Press, 1947)

  • James S Hirsch, Willie Mays: The Life, The Legend (New York: Scribner, 2009)

  • Jacob Hoye and Karolyn Ali (eds.), Tupac (New York: Atria Books, 2006)

  • Ice-T, The Ice Opinion (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1994)

  • Ice-T and Douglas Century, Ice: A Memoir of Gangster Life and Redemption-from South Central to Hollywood (New York: One World/Ballantine Books, 2012)

  • Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Peter Knobler, Giant Steps: The Autobiography of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (New York: Bantam Books, 1983)

  • Carlton Jackson, Hattie: The Life of Hattie McDaniel (New York: Madison Books, 1993)

  • Jesse Kimbrough, Defender of the Angels: A Black Policeman in Old Los Angeles (New York: The Macmillan Company, 1969)

  • John Klawitter, Headslap: The Life and Times of Deacon Jones (Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books, 1996)

  • Neil Lanctot, Campy: The Two Lives of Roy Campanella (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2011)

  • Lisa Leslie and Larry Burnett, Don't Let The Lipstick Fool You (New York, NY: Kensington Publishing, 2009)

  • Ronnie Lott, Total Impact (New York: Doubleday, 1991)

  • Hugh MacDonald, The Williams Sisters: from the Ghetto to Glory (Edinburgh, Scotland: Argyll Publishing, 2014)

  • Willie Mays and Lou Sahadi, Say Hey: The Autobiography of Willie Mays (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1988)

  • Joel McIver, Ice Cube: Attitude (London: Sanctuary, 2012)

  • William McSweeny, Go Up for Glory Bill Russell (New York Coward-McCann, 1966)

  • Tayannah Lee McQuillar and Fred L. Johnson, Tupac Shakur: The Life and Times of an American Icon (Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press, 2010)

  • Joe Morgan and David Falkner, Joe Morgan: A Life in Baseball (New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 1993)

  • Murry R. Nelson, Bill Russell: A Biography (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2005)

  • Shaquille O'Neal, Shaq Uncut: My Story (New York: Grand Central Publishing, 2011)

  • Terrell Owens and Jason Rosenhaus, T.O. (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2006)

  • Terrell Owens and Stephen Singular, Catch This!: Going Deep with the NFL's Sharpest Weapon (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2004)

  • Jeff Pearlman, Love Me, Hate Me: Barry Bonds and the making of an Antihero (New York: HarperCollins, 2009)

  • Dayn Perry, Reggie Jackson: The Life and Thunderous Career of Baseball's Mr. October (New York: William Morrow, 2011)

  • Stormey Ramdhan, My Life with the Knight (Savage, MD: La' Femme Fatale' Productions, 2014)

  • Arnold Rampersad, Jackie Robinson: A Biography (New York: Knopf, 1998)

  • Jerry Rice and Brian Curtis, Go Long!: My Journey Beyond the Game and the Fame (New York: Ballantine Books, 2008)

  • Jerry Rice and Michael Silver, Rice (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1996)

  • Ronin Ro, Dr. Dre: The Biography (New York: Thunder's Mouth Press, 2007)

  • Randy Roberts, Papa Jack: Jack Johnson and the Era Of White Hopes (New York: Free Press, 1985)

  • Jackie Robinson and Alfred Duckett, I Never Had It Made: An Autobiography of Jackie Robinson (New York, Putnam, 1972)

  • Harris Rosen, N.W.A—The Aftermath: Exclusive Interviews with Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Jerry Heller, Yella & Westside Connection (Toronto: Peace! Carving, 2015)

  • Theresa Runstedtler, Jack Johnson, Rebel Sojourner: Boxing in the Shadow of the Global Color Line (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2013)

  • Bill Russell, Second Wind: The Memoirs of an Opinionated Man (New York: Random House, 1980)

  • S. Leigh Savidge, Welcome to Death Row: The Uncensored History of the Rise & Fall of Death Row Records in the Words of Those Who Were There (Los Angeles: Xenon Press, 2015)

  • Cathy Scott, The Killing of Tupac Shakur (Las Vegas: Huntington Press, 2002)

  • Bobby Seale, Seize the Time (New York: Random House, 1968)

  • Dave Sheinin, RG3: The Promise (New York: Blue Rider Press, 2013)

  • Tupac Shakur, The Rose that Grew from Concrete (New York: Pocket Books, 2009)

  • Tommie Smith and David Steele, Silent Gesture: The Autobiography of Tommie Smith (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2007)

  • Alexander J. Somerville, Man of Color: An Autobiography (Los Angeles: L.L. Morrison 1949)

  • Felicia St. Jean and Jewell Caples, My Blood My Sweat My Tears (Detroit: Felicia St. Jean and Jewell Caples, 2015)

  • Richard Steins, Arthur Ashe: A Biography (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2005)

  • John Strege, Tiger: A Biography of Tiger Woods (New York: Broadway Books, 1998)

  • Woody Strode and Sam Young, Goal Dust: An Autobiography by Woody Strode (Lanham, MD: Madison Books, 1990)

  • Steven Travers, Barry Bonds: Baseball's Superman (Champaign, IL: Sports Publishing, 2003)

  • Jules Tygiel, Baseball's Great Experiment: Jackie Robinson and His Legacy (New York: Oxford University Press, 1983)

  • Jill Watts, Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood (New York: Amistad, 2005) 

  • Grace Williams, Williams Sisters: A Biography of Venus and Serena Williams (San Francisco: Hyperink, 2012)

  • John Alfred Williams, The Angry Ones (New York: Norton, 1960)

  • Richard Williams, Black and White: The Way I See It (New York: Atria Books, 2014)

  • John R.M. Wilson, Jackie Robinson and the American Dilemma (New York: Longman, 2009)

  • Rich Wolfe, Tony Gwynn: He Left His Heart in San Diego (Indianapolis, IN: Lone Wolfe Press, 2014)

  • Earl Woods, Playing Through: Straight Talk on Hard Work, Big Dreams, and Adventures with Tiger (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1998)

  • Earl Woods and Tiger Woods, Training a Tiger: A Father's Guide to Raising a Winner in Both Golf and Life (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1997)

  • Dave Zirin and John Wesley Carlos, The John Carlos Story: The Sports Moment That Changed the World (Chicago: Haymarket Books, 2013)

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Kansas

  • Langston Hughes, Not Without Laughter (New York: Scribner Paperback Fiction, 1930)

  • Bo Jackson, Bo Knows Bo (New York: Doubleday, 1990)

  • Buck O'Neil and David Conrads, I Was Right On Time (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1997)

  • Hakeem Olajuwon and Peter Knobler, Living the Dream: My Life and Basketball (New York: Villard Books, 1995)

  • Leroy Satchel Paige and David Lipman, Maybe I'll Pitch Forever (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1993)

  • Linda Pennington Black, A Legend Among Us: The Story of William "Youngblood" McCrary of the Negro Baseball League Kansas City Monarchs (United States of America: Linda Pennington Black, 2014)

  • Joe Posnanski, The Soul of Baseball: A Road Trip Through Buck O'Neil's America (New York: W. Morrow, 2008)

  • Larry Tye, Satchel: The Life and Times of an American Legend (New York: Random House, 2010)

 

Nebraska

  • Bob Gibson and Lonnie Wheeler, Stranger to the Game: The Autobiography of Bob Gibson (New York: Viking, 1994)

 

Oregon

  • Clyde Drexler and  Kerry Eggers, Clyde Drexler: Clyde the Glide (Champaign, IL: Sports Publishing, 2004)

 

Texas

  • Sam Blair, Earl Campbell: The Driving Force (Waco, TX: Word Books, 1980)

  • Earl Campbell and John Ruane, The Earl Campbell Story: A Football Great's Battle with Panic Disorder (Toronto: ECW Press, 1999)

  • Tony Dorsett and Harvey Frommer, Running Tough: Memoirs of A Football Maverick (New York: Doubleday, 1989)

  • George Foreman, By George: The Autobiography of George Foreman (New York: Villard Books, 1995)

  • Sal Fradella, Jack Johnson: They Didn't Know It Could Be Done (Kindle) (Wellesley, MA: Branden Books, 2014)

  • Robert M. Goldman, One Man Out: Curt Flood versus Baseball (Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas, 2008)

  • Bob Hayes and Robert Pack, Run, Bullet, Run: The Rise, Fall, and Recovery of Bob Hayes (New York: Harper & Row, 1990)

  • Thomas Hollywood Henderson and Peter Knobler, Out of Control Confessions of an NFL Casualty (New York: Putnam, 1987)

  • Thomas Henderson and Frank Luksa, In Control: The Rebirth of an NFL Legend (United States: Thomas Henderson Pub., 2004)

  • Brittney Griner and Sue Hovey, In My Skin: My Life On and Off the Basketball Court (New York: It Books, 2015)

  • Jack Johnson, My Life and Battles (Westport, CT: Praeger, 2009)

  • Lillian B. Jones, Five Generations Hence (College Station, TX: Texas A & M University Press, 1916)

  • Brad “Scarface” Jordan and Benjamin Meadows Ingram, Diary of a Madman: The Geto Boys, Life, Death, and the Roots of Southern Rap (New York: HarperCollins, 2015)

  • Harvey Martin, Texas Thunder: My Eleven Years with the Dallas Cowboys (New York: Rawson Associates, 1985)

  • Ed McCoyd, To Live and Dream: The Incredible Story of George Foreman (New York: New Street Publishing, 1997)

  • Paddy Joe Miller, The Tyler Rose: The Earl Campbell Story (Spring, TX: Schuromil Productions, 1997)

  • Betty Lou Phillips, Earl Campbell: Houston Oiler Superstar (New York: D. McKay Co., 1979)

  • Steve Richardson, Ricky Williams: Dreadlocks to Ditka (Champaign, IL: Sports Publishing, 2012)

  • Deion Sanders, Power, Money and Sex (Nashville, TN: Word Publishing, 1999)

  • Emmitt Smith and Steve Delsohn, The Emmitt Zone (New York: Crown Publishers, 1994)

  • Brad Snyder, A Well-Paid Slave: Curt Flood's Fight for Free Agency in Professional Sports (New York: Viking, 2007)

  • Everson Walls, Kevin B. Blackistone, and Frank Deford, A Gift for Ron: Friendship and Sacrifice On and Off the Gridiron (Guilford, CT: Lyons Press, 2009)

  • Geoffrey C. Ward, Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson (New York: A.A. Knopf, 2006)

 

Washington

  • Horace R. Cayton, Long Old Road: An Autobiography (New York: Trident Press, 1963)

  • Ken Griffey and Mark Vancil, Junior: Griffey on Griffey (New York: Collins Publishers, 1997)

  • Bill Gutman, Ken Griffey Jr: A Biography (New York: Pocket Books, 1998)

  • Warren Moon and Don Yeager, Never Give Up on Your Dream: My Journey (Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press, 2009)

  • Wayne Stewart, Alex Rodriguez: A Biography (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2007)

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