Freedom!: The Story of the Black Panther Party

by Joshua Bloom, Dion Graham (Narrator), Waldo E. Martin Jr.

Booklist Editors’ Choice
WINNER of the Russell Freedman Award for Non-Fiction for a Better World
WINNER–International Literacy Association (ILA)–Young Adult Nonfiction
HONOR–2023 Malka Penn Award for Human Rights
Top 10–In the Margins Book Award

There is a knowledge is power. The secret is this. Knowledge, applied at the right time and place, is more than power. It’s magic.

That’s what the Black Panther Party did. They called up this magic and launched a revolution.

In the beginning, it was a story like any other. It could have been yours and it could have been mine. But once it got going, it became more than any one person could have imagined.

This is the story of Huey and Bobby. Eldridge and Kathleen. Elaine and Fred and Ericka.

The committed party members. Their supporters and allies. The Free Breakfast Program and the Ten Point Program. It’s about Black nationalism, Black radicalism, about Black people in America.

From the authors of the acclaimed book, Black Against The History and Politics of the Black Panther Party, and introducing new talent Jetta Grace Martin, comes the story of the Panthers for younger listeners—meticulously researched, thrillingly told. Freedom! The Story of the Black Panther Party.

Audible Audio

Published January 18, 2022

About the author

Joshua Bloom is the Dean's Fellow in Social Research at UCLA, and winner of the American Book Award. He studies the dynamics by which innovative forms of social practice generate novel sources of power.

Reviews

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

As the subtitle states, Freedom! is the history of the Black Panther Party. I had of course heard of the Black Panthers, but I didn't know much at all. This was a really good overview. Lots of information, but all at an accessible level for the casual reader. I also commend the authors for remaining objective. There were a very few parts of the history where there were arguments or infighting, and they were shared right alongside the successes. The history is also told through biographies of leaders, which made it easier to connect to.

I got this audiobook free through the Audiobook Sync program, which is unfortunately discontinued. This was an awesome program that gave teens (or, like me, the adults who work with teens) free audiobooks all summer long. I'm still working my way through the stockpile I downloaded when the program was still going.