The Measure of a Man

In this luminous memoir, a true American icon looks back on his celebrated life and career. Sidney Poitier was the first African-American to win the Academy Award for best actor and his body of work is arguably the most morally significant in cinematic history. Poitier credits his parents and his childhood on tiny Cat Island in the Bahamas for equipping him with an unflinching sense of right and wrong and a feeling of self-worth he has never surrendered. Just a few years after his introduction to indoor plumbing and the automobile, Poitier broke racial barrier after racial barrier to launch a pioneering acting career. Here, in this beautifully written and forceful memoir, is Poitier's own introspective look at what has informed his performances and his life. What emerges is a picture of a man seeking truth, passion and balance in the face of limits - his own and the world's. A triumph of the spirit, The Measure of a Man captures the essential Poitier.