Magic Johnson led the Los Angeles Lakers to five NBA championships and became the best-known figure of the team’s Showtime era. His public life later encompassed HIV awareness, business, and community investment.
These selections include personal accounts, the shared Bird–Johnson book, a business guide, Roland Lazenby’s biography, and a children’s introduction. The business title is included as Johnson’s own writing, not presented as a conventional autobiography.
| Book | Year | Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| My Life | 1983 | Description / Buy at Amazon |
| Magic Johnson | 2007 | Description / Buy at Amazon |
| 32 Ways to Be a Champion in Business | 2008 | Description / Buy at Amazon |
| When the Game Was Ours | 2009 | Description / Buy at Amazon |
| Showtime | 2014 | Description / Buy at Amazon |
| Magic | 2023 | Description / Buy at Amazon |
| When the Game Was War | 2023 | Description / Buy at Amazon |
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Who is Magic Johnson?
Earvin Johnson was born in Lansing, Michigan, in 1959. He became nationally prominent at Michigan State, where his team defeated Larry Bird’s Indiana State side in the 1979 NCAA final. The Los Angeles Lakers selected him first overall in that year’s NBA draft.
Johnson won five NBA titles with the Lakers during the 1980s. He was named league MVP three times and Finals MVP three times. His size and passing ability helped make him an unusually versatile point guard and the organizer of the team’s fast-paced offense.
In 1991, Johnson announced that he had tested positive for HIV and retired from regular competition, although he later returned briefly. He played on the 1992 Olympic Dream Team. His subsequent work included HIV education and commercial ventures aimed at underserved urban markets, extending his public identity beyond basketball.
Does Magic Johnson have an autobiography?
My Life, written with William Novak, is Johnson’s autobiography. When the Game Was Ours is the joint account with Larry Bird and Jackie MacMullan. The selected 32 Ways to Be a Champion in Business draws on his entrepreneurial experience and is a business book rather than a life memoir.
My Life by Magic Johnson with William Novak
Magic Johnson recounts his life on and off the basketball court, working with William Novak. The autobiography describes the achievements that made him a prominent NBA player and the family members, friends, and basketball figures who helped shape his experience. His HIV diagnosis becomes a major personal turning point, bringing a different kind of uncertainty into a life associated with confidence and success. The account combines recollections of triumph and difficulty, presenting Johnson’s own perspective on the relationships and challenges behind his familiar public personality.
When the Game Was Ours by Larry Bird and Magic Johnson with Jackie MacMullan
Larry Bird and Magic Johnson revisit the rivalry that helped define professional basketball in the 1980s, working with Jackie MacMullan. The account moves between Boston and Los Angeles as their competition develops into respect and friendship. Championship successes sit alongside injuries, personal pressures, and Johnson’s HIV diagnosis. Their different experiences offer contrasting views of leadership, defeat, and the demands of sustaining excellence. The book combines two participants’ recollections, placing their individual careers within a shared story of a rivalry that changed both men and the NBA.
32 Ways to Be a Champion in Business by Magic Johnson
Magic Johnson draws on his transition from basketball celebrity to entrepreneur to discuss building businesses and creating opportunity in urban communities. He recalls the example of his father and local business owners, the mentors he met through basketball, and partnerships with major commercial brands. The book organizes experience into lessons about identifying markets, developing relationships, and sustaining enterprise. It belongs alongside his personal accounts as a statement of his business approach, rather than a conventional autobiography focused on childhood, basketball seasons, and retirement.
Best Magic Johnson Books
Magic: The Life of Earvin “Magic” Johnson by Roland Lazenby
Roland Lazenby examines Magic Johnson’s life from his family background and basketball development through NBA success, public crisis, and later business achievements. Interviews with coaches, teammates, friends, and other associates support a narrative concerned with both the entertainer and the private individual. The Lakers years and the impact of Johnson’s HIV announcement become central episodes, while his entrepreneurial career extends the story beyond playing. Lazenby connects the individual journey with wider American circumstances, presenting a complicated figure behind an exceptionally familiar smile and public image.
Best Magic Johnson Biography for Kids
Magic Johnson by Ellen Labrecque
Ellen Labrecque introduces Magic Johnson through the determination and confidence associated with his basketball career and the challenges he faced afterward. The biography connects his performances on court with the personal qualities required when his life changed following his HIV diagnosis. Rather than concentrating only on athletic achievements, it presents a player whose courage had to operate in different circumstances beyond competition. Written for young readers, the account offers an introduction to Johnson’s sporting life and public example without the length of a detailed adult biography.