What do you think?
Rate this book
Young King: The Making of Martin Luther King Jr.
Not yet published
Expected 5 May 26From a preeminent King scholar, the origin story of the man, minister, and civil rights hero who would lead the nation and change the world.
We know who Martin Luther King, Jr. became, but who was he at the beginning of his life? How did his youth inform his outlook and his approach to activism and service?
Before Martin Luther King, Jr. was a civil rights leader, the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, and a global hero, he was an emotional boy, and a middling high school student devoted to fashion, dancing, and dating. As he headed to college, he left the Jim Crow South for a summer job that would test his oratory skills preaching in the tobacco fields of Connecticut and ultimately give him a sense of hope for a life of racial peace and harmony.
Lerone A. Martin, Centennial Professor at Stanford University and the Faculty Director of the Martin Luther King Institute, traces the youthful roots of this legendary American to reveal the makings of a mighty force. Filled with revelations and written with compassion, Young King offers a new understanding of the influential preacher and activist’s emotional life, his youthful confusion about his future and career direction, his inspiration to fight for justice, his teenage missteps, and his first revelations of courage. As American undergoes another era of turmoil and change, this powerful biography offers encouragement for readers at a similar moment of life and provides an understanding of how greatness comes to light.
Martin illuminates both King’s weaknesses and the social failures that shaped him, including the brutal racism he endured growing up. This vital and essential work is a testament to how history shapes a leader.
Young King includes rarely seen black-and-white photographs of an adolescent MLK from his high school days and college years.
We know who Martin Luther King, Jr. became, but who was he at the beginning of his life? How did his youth inform his outlook and his approach to activism and service?
Before Martin Luther King, Jr. was a civil rights leader, the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, and a global hero, he was an emotional boy, and a middling high school student devoted to fashion, dancing, and dating. As he headed to college, he left the Jim Crow South for a summer job that would test his oratory skills preaching in the tobacco fields of Connecticut and ultimately give him a sense of hope for a life of racial peace and harmony.
Lerone A. Martin, Centennial Professor at Stanford University and the Faculty Director of the Martin Luther King Institute, traces the youthful roots of this legendary American to reveal the makings of a mighty force. Filled with revelations and written with compassion, Young King offers a new understanding of the influential preacher and activist’s emotional life, his youthful confusion about his future and career direction, his inspiration to fight for justice, his teenage missteps, and his first revelations of courage. As American undergoes another era of turmoil and change, this powerful biography offers encouragement for readers at a similar moment of life and provides an understanding of how greatness comes to light.
Martin illuminates both King’s weaknesses and the social failures that shaped him, including the brutal racism he endured growing up. This vital and essential work is a testament to how history shapes a leader.
Young King includes rarely seen black-and-white photographs of an adolescent MLK from his high school days and college years.
- GenresBiography
432 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication May 5, 2026
5 people are currently reading
32 people want to read
About the author
Lerone A. Martin
3 books10 followersLerone A. Martin is the Martin Luther King, Jr., Centennial Professor in Religious Studies and director of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I received an advanced reader copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review on my Goodreads page.
Young King: The Making of Martin Luther King Jr. is an engaging, deeply researched portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. in the years before he became the defining figure of the American civil rights movement. Covering his life from childhood through the formative period leading up to meeting his future wife, the book offers a vivid look at the experiences and influences that shaped the man the world would later come to know.
What makes this biography especially compelling is the way the author broadens the lens beyond King himself. Rather than presenting his journey in isolation, the narrative places him alongside other young Black men coming of age in the same era—including Malcolm X—to explore how similar circumstances could produce vastly different worldviews and paths. One particularly fascinating section examines a shared summer experience in which King and Malcolm may have crossed paths without ever meeting, yet emerged with contrasting perspectives that would later influence their very different approaches to justice and leadership. That comparative framing adds depth and nuance, and it kept me completely absorbed.
The writing is accessible and consistently engaging, balancing scholarly detail with storytelling momentum. I appreciated the inclusion of lesser-known anecdotes and context that many other biographies either overlook or pass by quickly. These moments make King feel less like a distant historical icon and more like a young man in the process of becoming himself, struggling, learning, and refining his beliefs in real time.
Overall, this is an insightful and rewarding read for anyone interested in American history, biography, or the human story behind influential leaders. It offers fresh angles even for readers already familiar with King’s life and legacy. I highly recommend adding this one to your shelves when it releases on May 5, 2026.
Young King: The Making of Martin Luther King Jr. is an engaging, deeply researched portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. in the years before he became the defining figure of the American civil rights movement. Covering his life from childhood through the formative period leading up to meeting his future wife, the book offers a vivid look at the experiences and influences that shaped the man the world would later come to know.
What makes this biography especially compelling is the way the author broadens the lens beyond King himself. Rather than presenting his journey in isolation, the narrative places him alongside other young Black men coming of age in the same era—including Malcolm X—to explore how similar circumstances could produce vastly different worldviews and paths. One particularly fascinating section examines a shared summer experience in which King and Malcolm may have crossed paths without ever meeting, yet emerged with contrasting perspectives that would later influence their very different approaches to justice and leadership. That comparative framing adds depth and nuance, and it kept me completely absorbed.
The writing is accessible and consistently engaging, balancing scholarly detail with storytelling momentum. I appreciated the inclusion of lesser-known anecdotes and context that many other biographies either overlook or pass by quickly. These moments make King feel less like a distant historical icon and more like a young man in the process of becoming himself, struggling, learning, and refining his beliefs in real time.
Overall, this is an insightful and rewarding read for anyone interested in American history, biography, or the human story behind influential leaders. It offers fresh angles even for readers already familiar with King’s life and legacy. I highly recommend adding this one to your shelves when it releases on May 5, 2026.
Displaying 1 of 1 review