Recommendations based on Monster: The Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Memberby Sanyika Shakur

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. The Autobiography of Malcolm X

    by Malcolm X
    A gripping account of one man's transformation from criminal to civil rights leader.

    Alternate cover for ISBN 9780345350688 Through a life of passion and struggle, Malcolm X became one of the most influential figures of the 20th Century. In this riveting account, he tells of his ... (Goodreads)

  2. Race Matters

    by Cornel West
    A critique of the structures of racism and prejudice in society and how they shape our lives.

    In this essay collection, many of which have previously appeared in journals, West, the director of Afro-American studies at Princeton & author of several books, addresses a number of issues of ... (Goodreads)

  3. Notes of a Native Son

    by James Baldwin
    A collection of essays exploring the complexities of race, identity, and society in America through the lens of Baldwin's personal experiences.

    Since its original publication in 1955, this first nonfiction collection of essays by James Baldwin remains an American classic. His impassioned essays on life in Harlem, the protest novel, movies, ... (Goodreads)

  4. Wiseguy

    by Nicholas Pileggi
    The true story of an undercover mob informant, uncovering the truth about organized crime.

    "Wiseguy" is Nicholas Pileggi's remarkable bestseller, the most intimate account ever printed of life inside the deadly high-stakes world of what some people call the Mafia. "Wiseguy" is Henry Hill's ... (Goodreads)

  5. Assata: An Autobiography

    by Assata Shakur
    A powerful memoir of her struggles and triumphs in the face of racism and oppression.

    On May 2, 1973, Black Panther Assata Shakur (aka JoAnne Chesimard) lay in a hospital, close to death, handcuffed to her bed, while local, state, and federal police attempted to question her about the ... (Goodreads)

  6. Pimp: The Story of My Life

    by Iceberg Slim
    Autobiography of a former pimp, detailing his life in the underworld of prostitution and crime.

    Robert (Iceberg Slim) Beck's first book is told without bitterness and with no pretense at moralizing. It is the smells, the sounds, the fears and the petty triumphs in the world of the street pimp. ... (Goodreads)

  7. Generation Kill: Devil Dogs, Iceman, Captain America, and the New Face of American War

    by Evan Wright
    A journalist embedded with a Marine battalion during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, providing a raw and unfiltered account of modern warfare.

    Another nameless town, another target for First Recon. It's only five in the afternoon, but a sandtorm has plunged everything into a hellish twilight of murky, red dust. On rooftops, in alleyways ... (Goodreads)

  8. A Child Called "It"

    by Dave Pelzer
    True story of a child's unbearable suffering at the hands of an abusive parent.

    Also see: Alternate Cover Editions for this ISBN [ACE], ACE #1, This book chronicles the unforgettable account of one of the most severe child abuse cases in California history. It is the story of ... (Goodreads)

  9. Not Without My Daughter

    by Betty Mahmoody
    A woman's dramatic fight for freedom from an oppressive husband in a foreign land.

    It was August 3, 1984. Moody, Betty, and Mahtob had spent two days traveling from their home in Detroit to Moody's native country of Iran. In preparation for their arrival, Betty, at Moody's request, ... (Wikipedia)

  10. Twelve Years a Slave

    by Solomon Northup
    A man's journey of survival and resilience after being kidnapped and sold into slavery in the antebellum South.

    Twelve Years a Slave, sub-title: Narrative of Solomon Northup, citizen of New-York, kidnapped in Washington city in 1841, and rescued in 1853, from a cotton plantation near the Red River in ... (Goodreads)

  11. Slouching Towards Bethlehem

    by Joan Didion
    Collection of essays exploring the cultural landscape of 1960s America.

    The first nonfiction work by one of the most distinctive prose stylists of our era, Joan Didion's Slouching Towards Bethlehem remains, decades after its first publication, the essential portrait of ... (Goodreads)

  12. Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West

    by Blaine Harden
    True story of a man who escaped from a North Korean prison camp and his journey to freedom.

    A, New York Times, bestseller, the shocking story of one of the few people born in a North Korean political prison to have escaped and survived. North Korea is isolated and hungry, bankrupt and ... (Goodreads)

  13. Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance

    by Barack Obama
    An exploration of the Obama family history, tracing the threads of identity and race.

    In this lyrical, unsentimental, and compelling memoir, the son of a black African father and a white American mother searches for a workable meaning to his life as a black American. It begins in New ... (Goodreads)

  14. A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again: Essays and Arguments

    by David Foster Wallace
    Collection of essays and arguments, exploring the absurdities of contemporary culture.

    In this exuberantly praised book — a collection of seven pieces on subjects ranging from television to tennis, from the Illinois State Fair to the films of David Lynch, from postmodern literary ... (Goodreads)

  15. The Wolf of Wall Street

    by Jordan Belfort
    The remarkable story of a stockbroker's rise and fall, navigating the shark-infested waters of Wall Street.

    By day he made thousands of dollars a minute. By night he spent it as fast as he could, on drugs, sex, and international globe-trotting. From the binge that sank a 170-foot motor yacht and ran up a ... (Goodreads)

  16. Marching Powder: A True Story of Friendship, Cocaine, and South America's Strangest Jail

    by Rusty Young
    Unforgettable story of an English drug smuggler's experience in Bolivia's notorious San Pedro prison.

    Rusty Young was backpacking in South America when he heard about Thomas McFadden, a convicted English drug trafficker who ran tours inside Bolivia's notorious San Pedro prison. Intrigued, the young ... (Goodreads)

  17. Bravo Two Zero

    by Andy McNab
    A thrilling account of a Special Air Service patrol mission gone wrong in the Iraqi desert.

    In January 1991, eight members of the SAS regiment embarked upon a top secret mission that was to infiltrate them deep behind enemy lines. Under the command of Sergeant Andy McNab, they were to sever ... (Goodreads)

  18. The Lost Boy

    by Dave Pelzer
    A heart-wrenching story of a boy's survival of extreme childhood abuse and neglect.

    The book continues after the ending of the previous book,, A Child Called "It", with David Pelzer, 9 years old, running away from his home in Daly City, California . He ends up in a bar, getting ... (Wikipedia)

  19. Tao Te Ching

    by Lao Tzu
    A collection of wise sayings and reflections on the nature of existence.

    A lucid translation of the well-known Taoist classic by a leading scholar-now in a Shambhala Pocket Library edition. Written more than two thousand years ago, the Tao Teh Ching , or -The Classic of ... (Goodreads)

  20. Marley and Me: Life and Love With the World's Worst Dog

    by John Grogan
    A heartfelt journey of a family and their beloved, but mischievous, dog.

    John and Jenny were just beginning their life together. They were young and in love, with a perfect little house and not a care in the world. Then they brought home Marley, a wiggly yellow furball of ... (Goodreads)

  21. Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention

    by Manning Marable
    A biography exploring the life of Malcolm X, civil rights activist and leader.

    Selected by, The New York Times Book Review, as a Notable Book of the Year Years in the making-the definitive biography of the legendary black activist. Of the great figure in twentieth-century ... (Goodreads)

  22. This Boy's Life

    by Tobias Wolff
    A young man's memoir of his tumultuous childhood and his struggle to overcome obstacles.

    In the 1950s, nomadic and flaky Caroline Wolff wants to settle down and find a decent man to provide a better home for herself and her son, Tobias "Toby" Wolff. She moves to Seattle, Washington and ... (Wikipedia)

  23. The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America

    by George Packer
    An exploration of America's political and economic decline over the last few decades.

    A riveting examination of a nation in crisis, from one of the finest political journalists of our generation American democracy is beset by a sense of crisis. Seismic shifts during a single ... (Goodreads)

  24. The Tao of Pooh

    by Benjamin Hoff
    A whimsical exploration of Taoism through the beloved characters of Winnie the Pooh.

    The Wisdom of Pooh. Is there such thing as a Western Taoist? Benjamin Hoff says there is, and this Taoist's favorite food is honey. Through brilliant and witty dialogue with the beloved Pooh-bear and ... (Goodreads)

  25. Life Application Study Bible: NIV

    by Anonymous
    A Bible with extensive notes and resources to help readers apply its teachings to their daily lives.

    - Application Notes provide penetrating insight into what the Bible says to you about how you live. - Book Introductions use timelines, overviews, and outlines to prepare you to hear and respond to ... (Goodreads)

  26. Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography

    by Mark Mathabane
    A memoir of growing up black in apartheid South Africa, detailing the author's journey to overcome poverty and oppression through education and tennis.

    At his mother's insistence, Mathabane starts school and learns to love it, rising to the top of his class in spite of frequent punishments due to his family's late payments for school fees and ... (Wikipedia)

  27. Geisha, a Life

    by Mineko Iwasaki
    Autobiography of a geisha, recounting her life of beauty, art, and traditional Japanese culture.

    "No woman in the three-hundred-year history of the karyukai has ever come forward in public to tell her story. We have been constrained by unwritten rules not to do so, by the robes of tradition and ... (Goodreads)

  28. Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit

    by John E. Douglas
    A memoir of John E. Douglas, a former FBI agent who pioneered the profiling of serial killers.

    He has hunted some of the most notorious and sadistic criminals of our time: The Trailside Killer in San Francisco, the Atlanta Child murderer. He has confronted, interviewed and researched dozens of ... (Goodreads)

  29. Gang Leader for a Day: A Rogue Sociologist Takes to the Streets

    by Sudhir Venkatesh
    An exploration of urban poverty and gang life, through the eyes of an unlikely researcher.

    The story of the young sociologist who studied a Chicago crack-dealing gang from the inside captured the world's attention when it was first described in, Freakonomics,., Gang Leader for a Day, is ... (Goodreads)

  30. Black Boy

    by Richard Wright
    Autobiographical account of a young black man's struggle against racism and oppression.

    A special 75th anniversary edition of Richard Wright's powerful and unforgettable memoir, with a new foreword by John Edgar Wideman and an afterword by Malcolm Wright, the author’s grandson. When it ... (Barnes & Noble)