Memoir of an L.A. Gang Member

Kody Scott's memoir, "Monster: The Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Member," was a searing best-seller published in ten languages, with over 300,000 copies in print in the United States alone. Written in solitary confinement, the book chronicled his sixteen years as a gangbanger in Los Angeles and became a classic. At the age of twelve, Kody Scott was initiated into the L.A. gang the Crips after pumping eight blasts from a sawed-off shotgun at a group of rival gang members. He quickly matured into one of the most formidable Crip combat soldiers, earning the name "Monster" for committing acts of brutality and violence that even repulsed his fellow gang members.

When Kody Scott's inevitable jail term confined him to a maximum-security cell, a complete political and personal transformation followed. From "Monster," he became Sanyika Shakur, a black nationalist, member of the New Afrikan Independence Movement, and crusader against the causes of gangsterism. In a document that has been compared to The Autobiography of Malcolm X and Eldridge Cleaver's Soul on Ice, Shakur makes palpable the despair and decay of America's inner cities and gives eloquent voice to one aspect of the black ghetto experience today.

The book serves as a powerful and poignant account of the realities of gang life, the devastating impact it has on individuals and communities, and the potential for redemption and transformation, even in the darkest of circumstances. Kody Scott's journey from a twelve-year-old gang initiate to a committed activist and intellectual is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the possibility of breaking the cycle of violence and social injustice. The memoir has been hailed as a must-read for those seeking to understand the complexities and challenges facing inner-city youth and the ongoing struggle for social and racial equality in the United States.

product information: