Tupac Shakur

January 25, 2010
Since his untimely death in 1996, rapper Tupac Shakur has been memorialized in a wide range of books and documentary films, but few are as exhaustively researched and contextualized as this latest, unauthorized biography from author McQuillar (When Rap Music Had a Conscience) and history professor Johnson. Seeking to understand the enigmatic performer, McQuillar and Johnson have enlisted a psychologist to profile Shakur, looked into a century of his family history, and paid particular attention to the political background of his mother, Afeni, a former Black Panther. The result is insightful, enjoyable and expansive, even if it doesn't answer the questions that still linger regarding Shakur's celebrity lifestyle and still-unsolved murder. For casual fans with no prior exposure to Shakur's life, this biography will prove thorough and accessible, with lengthy but informative tangents that cover seemingly all of Tupac's collaborators and associates. Readers looking for glitzy speculation will not find it here, and Tupac enthusiasts may not learn much new, but this undeniably solid biography will deepen anyone's appreciation of the hip-hop legend.

January 29, 2010
Tupac Shakur's iconic status-both as a pioneer and a tragic icon of hip-hop-assures that there will always be abundant biographical material. What makes this contribution from McQuillar (When Rap Music Had a Conscience) and Johnson (history, Hope Coll.) original is their emphasis on the historical and cultural context of the artist's life. As much a biography of Shakur as a history of racial struggle in America-from the rebellious Lumbee Indians of Shakur's North Carolina home through his mother's membership in the Black Panther Party-this is a scholarly work that goes beyond a mere chronology of the artist's life.Verdict The tone is occasionally dry, the authors rely on secondary sources, and readers looking for a line-by-line analysis of recordings will need to look elsewhere; however, those looking for a compelling, no-holds-barred biography and an education regarding significant historical events should seek out this book.-Bill Baars, Lake Oswego P.L., OR

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 1, 2010
In September 1996, musician and actor Tupac Shakur was gunned down on a Las Vegas street. His murder has never been solved. Although he released his first album only in 1991, by the time of his death Shakur was at the top of his field, a smash-hit recording artist who had also received acclaim for acting in such movies as Juice and Poetic Justice. He had also seen his share of controversy: an armed robbery in which he was shot several times; the murder of a former friend (in which some observers tried to implicate Shakur); a conviction and prison sentence for sexual assault. The authors acknowledge Shakurs deeply troubled childhoodhis mother, a former Black Panther, was tried (and acquitted) for conspiracy to commit murder; his stepfather was on the FBIs 10 Most Wanted listbut they also celebrate the rappers intelligence and his gifts as an artist who wrote about love and respect, not hate and violence. The Shakur who emerges here is no illiterate gangster-turned-gangsta but, rather, a bright, artistic, driven man whose life and career continue to inspire many people.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)