AUGUST 2010 - AudioFile
Rapper 50 Cent is known as a volatile artist, so it's no surprise he takes some risks with this book, which isn't the straight bio one would expect from a star of his magnitude. It’s more like a manifesto in the style of THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MALCOLM X—which 50 (né Curtis Jackson) quotes in the beginning. But if that reeks of megalomania, that's just the start: 50 has enlisted author Robert Green to draw parallels between his own life and those of famous historical figures like Malcolm X and even Napoleon. Green also narrates this work, and his elasticized voice is a surprise—cool and relaxed but with impeccable diction. One can’t imagine Green mumbling—or even changing pitch. Not that his voice is monotonous—quite the contrary, it's actually dulcet and soothing. J.S.H. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine
In 2000, author Robert Greene published his 48 Laws of Power, which quickly became a bestseller. Among the most unlikely of its readers was Curtis James Jackson III, a 25-year-old resident of South Jamaica, Queens, whose distinguished name concealed a rough background including a felony conviction for selling crack cocaine. Jackson, now known worldwide as hip-hop superstar 50 Cent, credits Greene's book with helping him make the transition from self-doomed drug dealer to rapping success. In this book, this unlikely pair teaches readers to put their lives together in an unforgiving world.
AUGUST 2010 - AudioFile
Rapper 50 Cent is known as a volatile artist, so it's no surprise he takes some risks with this book, which isn't the straight bio one would expect from a star of his magnitude. It’s more like a manifesto in the style of THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MALCOLM X—which 50 (né Curtis Jackson) quotes in the beginning. But if that reeks of megalomania, that's just the start: 50 has enlisted author Robert Green to draw parallels between his own life and those of famous historical figures like Malcolm X and even Napoleon. Green also narrates this work, and his elasticized voice is a surprise—cool and relaxed but with impeccable diction. One can’t imagine Green mumbling—or even changing pitch. Not that his voice is monotonous—quite the contrary, it's actually dulcet and soothing. J.S.H. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine
