Colin Kaepernick to Publish THE PERILOUS FIGHT—his Defining and Uncompromising Memoir—with Legacy Lit on September 15, 2026
Audiobook Produced by and Releases Exclusively from Audible on September 15
New York, NY (April 7, 2026) — Renowned Civil Rights Activist and Super Bowl quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, announced plans today to publish THE PERILOUS FIGHT, a new memoir acquired by Legacy Lit Editor, Amina Iro. Iro acquired World Rights from Creative Artists Agency, LLC. Legacy Lit will publish in hardcover and eBook editions on September 15, 2026. The audiobook, narrated by Kaepernick, is produced by and will be available exclusively from Audible to coincide with the hardcover and eBook release. THE PERILOUS FIGHT is now available for pre-order.
On September 1, 2016, Colin Kaepernick took a knee during The Star Spangled Banner, but the world has never fully understood his story. Not the “why.” Not what it cost. Not what it took to become the man who was ready for that moment.
That story begins in Turlock, California, where Kaepernick, a Black kid adopted into a white family, spent his earliest years navigating an identity the world around him didn’t always know how to hold. Everything that connected him to who he truly was—his Blackness, his culture, his sense of self—was met with resistance. Sports became his refuge and his proving ground. On the field, his talent could not be questioned, minimized, or taken from him. It was the one space that was entirely his. And what that space produced was extraordinary: a quarterback whose arm and instincts would carry him to the Super Bowl and into the history books.
But success brought with it an education he hadn’t anticipated. He began to see the NFL not just as a league, but as a mirror of American capitalism, of racial exploitation, of a country that celebrated Black entertainment and criminalized Black lives in the same breath. He had been reading: Malcolm X. Muhammad Ali. Huey P. Newton. Angela Davis. And what he saw in the NFL, in Turlock, in the repeated, unpunished killing of Black and Brown Americans by the very systems claiming to protect them, converged into an undeniable truth: this was not someone else’s fight. It was his. It is ours.
When Kaepernick knelt, he was not acting on impulse. He was acting on years of becoming, of absorbing, reckoning, and refusing to look away. In response, the NFL rejected him, the country revealed itself, and the man who had spent his whole life earning his successes chose, deliberately, to risk all of it for something larger than himself.
But in the ten years since he took a knee, the questions his protest raised about race, power, identity, and the courage it takes to fight for a more equitable world have not gone away. They are the questions of our time. They are the questions this book answers.
“People saw the moment. But they didn’t see the years that made it possible: the questions about who I was; the injustices I could no longer ignore; the voices of those who came before me that I carried into that stadium. That journey, from a Black kid navigating an identity the world didn’t always make space for, to an athlete who realized the game was bigger than football, shaped everything. When I took a knee, it wasn’t a sudden act. It was the result of years of becoming. And what came after taught me the most important truth: this fight has never belonged to one person. It belongs to all of us. We fight for each other. We build with each other. We must fight for justice and equity with the courage and clarity this moment demands. That is how we build a future worth fighting for,” says Kaepernick.
“One of the pillars of the Legacy Lit imprint is to inspire social change through unique and powerful stories and there are few better suited to represent that mission than Colin Kaepernick,” says Krishan Trotman, VP, Publisher, Legacy Lit. “He was the catalyst of an undeniable movement that captured the attention and interest of the world. I am thrilled that he chose Legacy Lit as a partner in sharing his valuable perspective, and his unvarnished story for the first time. Colin is an inspiration to so many, and I know that readers, the world over, will be moved by his poignant memoir.”
Diana Dapito, Audible Head of Consumer Content, said: “Hearing Colin Kaepernick tell his story in his own voice brings an urgency and authenticity that only he can deliver, and we’re honored to capture his words in this audiobook. This is a once-in-a-generation story that’s powerfully relevant today. It’s a privilege to serve as the exclusive audio publisher for this memoir and to collaborate with Colin and Legacy Lit to bring this vital work to listeners worldwide.”
In THE PERILOUS FIGHT, Kaepernick delivers his story with the same unflinching conviction that defined the moment the world watched. Equal parts memoir and manifesto, it traces the off-the-field battles that turned a single act of protest into a movement that changed American sports and culture forever. This is the story of a man who became someone the moment demanded. It is a story about identity, sacrifice, and the cost of courage. And it is, ultimately, a story about all of us and the future we are still fighting to build.
Colin Kaepernick is a Super Bowl quarterback who holds the all-time NFL record for most rushing yards in a game by a quarterback. He is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, and civil rights activist. He is the founder of the Know Your Rights Camp, Kaepernick Media (Formerly Ra Vision Media), Kaepernick Publishing, and Lumi Story AI. He has been awarded Amnesty International’s Ambassador of Conscience Award, the Sports Illustrated Muhammad Ali Legacy Award, the ACLU’s Eason Monroe Courageous Advocate Award, and numerous others for his work in athletics and advocacy. His show, Colin in Black and White, co-produced by Ava DuVernay, has won two NAACP Awards, his Nike “Dream Crazy” has won an Emmy, and he’s been featured in GQ, Men’s Health, TIME, Sports Illustrated, Vanity Fair, New York Times, the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, and many more. Learn more at Kaepernick7.com and follow for updates on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Threads, TikTok, X.com, and YouTube.
About Legacy Lit:
Legacy Lit is an imprint dedicated to giving voice to issues, authors, and all groups that have been underrepresented, under-served, and overlooked. Our mission is to inspire social change and to elevate and celebrate diverse communities. We are unapologetically intentional and committed to promoting equality and equity for all people. Our books uplift and celebrate diverse communities using fresh narratives, powerful storytelling, and big ideas that will educate, enlighten, and inspire.
About Grand Central Publishing Group:
Grand Central Publishing Group reaches a diverse audience through books that cater to every kind of reader. Our divisions include Grand Central Publishing, Hachette Nashville, and Union Square & Co.
About Hachette Book Group:
Hachette Book Group (HBG) is a leading U.S. general-interest book publisher made up of dozens of esteemed imprints within the publishing groups Basic Books Group, Grand Central Publishing Group, Hachette Audio, Little, Brown and Company, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Orbit, Workman Publishing, and Running Press Group. We also provide custom distribution, fulfillment, and sales services to several publishing companies.
Our books and authors have received the Pulitzer Prize, National Book Award, Caldecott Medal, Newbery Medal, Booker Prize, Nobel Prize, James Beard Award, and other major honors.
We are committed to diversity in our company and our publishing programs, and to fostering a culture of inclusion for all our employees and authors. We are proud to be part of Hachette Livre, the world’s third-largest trade and educational publisher.
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About Audible:
Audible, Inc., an Amazon.com, Inc. subsidiary (NASDAQ:AMZN), is the leading creator and provider of premium audio storytelling, offering global audiences a powerful way to enhance and enrich their lives through extraordinary content. Audible’s catalog includes more than 1,000,000 audio titles, including Audible Originals as well as audiobooks and podcasts from leading studios, print, audio and magazine publishers and world-renowned entertainers.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Megan Perritt-Jacobson, Senior Director of Publicity, GCP Non-Fiction
megan.perritt-jacobson@hbgusa.com
Estefania Acquaviva, Senior Publicist, GCP Non-Fiction