A Taste of Power

A Black Woman's Story

By: Elaine Brown

Narrated by: Elaine Brown

“A stunning picture of a Black woman’s coming of age in America. Put it on the shelf beside The Autobiography of Malcolm X.” (Kirkus Reviews)

Elaine Brown assumed her role as the first and only female leader of the Black Panther Party with these words: “I have all the guns and all the money. I can withstand challenge from without and from within. Am I right, Comrade?” It was August 1974. From a small Oakland-based cell, the Panthers had grown to become a revolutionary national organization, mobilizing Black communities and white supporters across the country - but relentlessly targeted by the police and the FBI, and increasingly riven by violence and strife within. How Brown came to a position of power over this paramilitary, male-dominated organization, and what she did with that power, is a riveting, unsparing account of self-discovery.

Brown’s story begins with growing up in an impoverished neighborhood in Philadelphia and attending a predominantly white school, where she first sensed what it meant to be Black, female, and poor in America. She describes her political awakening during the bohemian years of her adolescence, and her time as a foot soldier for the Panthers, who seemed to hold the promise of redemption. And she tells of her ascent into the upper echelons of Panther leadership: her tumultuous relationship with the charismatic Huey Newton, who would become her lover and her nemesis; her experience with the male power rituals that would sow the seeds of the party's demise; and the scars that she both suffered and inflicted in that era’s paradigm-shifting clashes of sex and power. Stunning, lyrical, and acute, this is the indelible testimony of a Black woman’s battle to define herself.

“A glowing achievement.” (Los Angeles Times)

“Honest, funny, subjective, unsparing, and passionate...A Taste of Power weaves autobiography and political history into a story that fascinates and illuminates.” (The Washington Post)

©1992 Elaine Brown (P)2021 Audible, Inc.

Beautiful Story

Here’s another poignant example of living with purpose and meaning. Highly recommend for anyone curious about the righteous indignation of the Black Panthers.

Needed history

Enjoyed Elaine’s voice, great stories, relevant insight into how the tentacles of the system destroyed the party

ELAINE!!!!

Elaine kept me hooked! I found out so much about the Panther Party I had no idea about. I heard about the food programs, but I was led to believe that the Panthers were a group of men that led the charge and created change. Women worked in serving food and childcare. I laughed, I got teary but most importantly I wanted more.

A Female Panther’s Story

I loved this book for anyone who would like to get the full understanding of the Black Panthers. While Huey’s “Revolutionary Suicide” is absolutely amazing, we need to continue to read books from the perspective of women in the Black Panther Party. From Assata Shakur to Elaine Brown, Black Panther women kept that party together through the toughest of times, without them there would be no Party.

Candid, Self-aware and Powerful

Elaine Brown has indeed lived a full and extraordinary life. May we all wish to live as many lives as she had.