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Dolemite Is My Name
Dolemite Is My Name C. Liegh McInnis https://aalbc.com/reviews/images/Dolemite_is_My_Name.jpg Film Review Rating: R (for some sexuality, full nudity and brief language) Genre: Drama Directed By: C...
We Cast a Shadow
We Cast a Shadow Tony Lindsay Book Review In Maurice Carlos Ruffin’s first novel, We Cast a Shadow, the reader meets a complex and unnamed protagonist. The main character of this futuristic nov...
Norbit
Norbit Kam Williams norbit9.jpg Film Review Na’ve Nerdy Nice Guy Search for True Love in Eddie Murphy Vehicle Norbit Rated PG-13 for nudity, sexuality, profanity, and crude humor. Run...
A Thousand Words
A Thousand Words Kam Williams a_thousand_words_movie_poster.jpg Film Review Eddie Murphy Gives Audience the Silent Treatment in Ill-Conceived Sitcom A Thousand Words [2012] In Theaters: Mar...
Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain
Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain Kam Williams kevin-hart-let-me-explain.jpg Film Review Hottest Stand-Up Comic Wows Sold-Out Garden in Concert Tour Finale Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain In Theaters: Jul 3, 20...
Red Light Special
Red Light Special Thumper Book Review Yeah, yeah, surprised that I am reviewing, no less read, Red Light Special by Risqu’. Well, I am too. don't let the surprise be about the sub...
Everything I Know About Zombies
Everything I Know About Zombies Carol Taylor Book Review “When the apocalypse came, nine-year-old Letitia Johnson tried. She grabbed her little sister and her classmates and locked them ...
Don’t Shoot! I’m Coming Out
Don’t Shoot! I’m Coming Out Kam Williams Book Review ’This book is dedicated to young men who are battling with their sexual orientation and to those men who embrace their homosexua...
Blind Light
Blind Light Carol Taylor Book Review In 2001, visionary social justice advocate, Glenda R. Taylor was struck with a potentially devastating illness that took most of her sight. Instead of retreating ...
Cosbyology
Cosbyology Akilah Monifa Book Review Many people regard Bill Cosby as the penultimate father figure of the 80s, replacing Robert Young of "Father Knows Best." Cosby is probably best known...
Blacktrospective 2006
Blacktrospective 2006 Kam Williams https://aalbc.com/reviews/akeela46sm.jpg Film Review Blacktrospective 2006 ’ Annual Look Back at the Best (and Worst) in Black Cinema by Kam Williams How d...
We Gotta Have It
We Gotta Have It Kam Williams Book Review ’We Gotta Have It represents twenty years of seeing a new generation of Black movies. Before this journey began in 1986, with Spike Lee’s She...
The Loneliness of the Black Republican: Pragmatic Politics and the Pursuit of Power
The Loneliness of the Black Republican: Pragmatic Politics and the Pursuit of Power Kam Williams Book Review “This study introduces readers to key figures across a spectrum of black Republican...
The Perfect Holiday
The Perfect Holiday Kam Williams the_pe24.jpg Film Review Santa Woos Overburdened Mom in Syrupy Sweet Christmas Comedy The Perfect Holiday Rated PG for mild epithets and suggestive humor. Runni...
Dreamgirls (2006)
Dreamgirls (2006) Michael Dequina dreamg1.jpg Film Review Dreamgirls (2006) Rated PG-13 for sex, expletives, and drug use. Running time: 125 minutes Studio: Dreamworks Pictures Review...
Meet Dave (2008)
Meet Dave (2008) Kam Williams meet_d27.jpg Film Review Eddie Murphy Misfires as Brother from Another Planet Meet Dave Rated PG for action, suggestive...
Hey, Boo: HarperLee & To Kill a MockingBird
Hey, Boo: HarperLee & To Kill a MockingBird Kam Williams images/i_heyboo.jpg Film Review Intriguing Documentary Revisits "To Kill a Mockingbird" Hey, Boo Unrated Distribu...
Tower Heist
Tower Heist Kam Williams towerheist.jpg Film Review Victims Turn Tables on Con Man in Murphy-Stiller Buddy Comedy Tower Heist Rated PG-13 for profanity and sexuality. Running time: 104 Minute...
Phenomenally Me
Phenomenally Me Chris Hayden Book Review In a dark room with a blue light In the basement, music just right Nothing going down but the Mellow sounds of Mr. DJ’s turntables Going round" Boyz...
On The Edge of a Leaf
On The Edge of a Leaf Clarence V. Reynolds Book Review In his latest children’s picture book, At the Edge of a Leaf, author and poet Vincent L. Johnson draws from his love of gardening, nature,...
Speaking of Summer
Speaking of Summer Brenda M. Greene Book Review Mental illness in fiction provides a lens and a relatively safe space by which readers can examine its complexity and impact on the lives of the indivi...
Dark Matter: Reading the Bones
Dark Matter: Reading the Bones Chris Hayden Book Review If It Ain’t Speculative and It Ain’t Fiction Need Black Folks Read Speculative Fiction? It distresses me when I can grant only q...
The Hate U Give
The Hate U Give Kam Williams images/the-hate-you-give-movie-poster.jpg Film Review Amandla Stenberg Stars in Adaptation of Searing, Inner City Saga Excellent ★★★★ (out...
The Hurricane
The Hurricane Michael Dequina images/the16.37.jpg Film Review Rubin "Hurricane" Carter’s 1962 knockout punch against Florentino Fernandez came in the first round...
1971 (★★★★) Film Review
1971 (★★★★) Film Review Kam Williams https://aalbc.com/reviews/1971.jpg Film Review Whistleblower Documentary Recounts Break-In Uncovering Illegal FBI Surveillance Program 1971 In Theaters: Fe...
Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America
Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America Kam Williams Book Review “America is in trouble, and a lot of that trouble—perhaps most of it—has to do with race. Everywhere we tu...
Hope on a Tightrope
Hope on a Tightrope Kam Williams Book Review ’We are now in one of the most truly prophetic moments in the history of America. The poor and very poor are sleeping with self-de...
The Speech: The Story behind Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Dream
The Speech: The Story behind Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Dream Kam Williams Book Review “A great speech is both timely and timeless. First and foremost, it must touch and move its immediate ...
Animated Objects
Animated Objects Patricia Mckinney Book Review I was very impressed with Animated Objects by Linda Addison. It was written by a person who truly loves and enjoys the horror and fantasy ...
A Game of Character: A Family Journey from Chicago's Southside to the Ivy League and Beyond
A Game of Character: A Family Journey from Chicago's Southside to the Ivy League and Beyond Kam Williams Book Review "A fundamental teaching my parents always emphasized [was] that life happens to...
Material Witness: The Drew Smith Series
Material Witness: The Drew Smith Series Robert Fleming Book Review In this third installment of Norwood Holland’s acclaimed Drew Smith Series, Material Witness, there are a few wrinkles in both...
Black Boys, I See You
Black Boys, I See You Kirkus Book Review STARRED REVIEW Written from a place of love and deeply attuned to the emotional needs of Black boys. A kid lit giant extends a mighty message of love. ...
Forced into Glory
Forced into Glory Kam Williams Book Review ’I will say then, that I am not, nor have ever been, in favor of bringing about in any way, the social and political equality of the...
The Light of Truth: Writings of an Anti-Lynching Crusader
The Light of Truth: Writings of an Anti-Lynching Crusader Kam Williams Book Review “Ida B. Wells was born a slave in Holly Springs, Mississippi in 1862. After beginning a teaching career to ...
God’s Graffiti: Inspiring Stories for Teens
God’s Graffiti: Inspiring Stories for Teens Kam Williams Book Review “I was raised in poverty, surrounded by drug dealers, gangs and community violence. My mother was addicted to crack cocai...
The Other Sister
The Other Sister Shafika Burke Book Review Imagine living your life into adulthood and then learning that you aren’t who you think you are. You find out that your parents are really your grandp...
Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original
Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original Robert Fleming Book Review Highly detailed, stunning, and comprehensive, Robin Kelley’s excellent biography of innovative jazz pian...
Bibsy
Bibsy Carol Taylor Book Review “Langston County is tucked into the southern tip of New York State, wedged between the Hudson River and the New Jersey state line. And it was home to Jake Tuck...
Mixed Me!
Mixed Me! Kam Williams Book Review Mom and Dad say I’m a blend of dark and light:“We mixed you perfectly, and got you just right.” Mike has awesome hair. He has LOTS of energy!...
A Night In Babylon
A Night In Babylon Robert Fleming Book Review This “Woke” novel, A Night In Babylon, seems ripped from the current headlines. It opens with pow-pow-pow action worthy of any TV cop show, w...
Bright Eyes
Bright Eyes Troy Johnson Book Review Here, Cheryl Willis Hudson co-author of: Bright Eyes, Brown Skin, helps young children see the beauty of their physical characteristics. Bright eyes, brown sk...
Chocolate Sangria
Chocolate Sangria Thumper Book Review Reviewed by Thumper for AALBC.com I read Tracy Price-Thompson’s first book, Black Coffee, last year. I loved it and wrote a glowing review for it. Befor...
Evil Never Sleeps
Evil Never Sleeps Andre Seewood Book Review If the short story is a lost art, then you wouldn’t know it from reading Robert Fleming’s latest collection of story stories, Evil Never Slee...
Black Brother, Black Brother
Black Brother, Black Brother Shafika Burke Book Review Invisibility is all Donte wishes for after moving from New York to Massachusetts. The move places him in a war against people blinded by racism ...
Sincerely Speaking Spiritually
Sincerely Speaking Spiritually Robert Fleming Book Review Like many successful self-help books, Sincerely Speaking Spiritually, celebrates verses of faith and inspiration in the Holy Word. Its author...
Badass Black Girl: Questions, Quotes, and Affirmations for Teens
Badass Black Girl: Questions, Quotes, and Affirmations for Teens Carol Taylor Book Review Dear Badass Black Girl, You are a true warrior who inherited the strength, courage, wisdom, love, and di...
Wimbey’s Corner
Wimbey’s Corner Emanuel Carpenter Book Review At first glance, one might think that Wimbey’s Corner is a story about a big and black country bumpkin’ named Wayne Hunter who moves from a...
The Ditchdigger’s Daughters
The Ditchdigger’s Daughters Paige Turner Book Review The Ditchdigger’s Daughters is the story of Donald Thornton, a laborer, and his wife Tass, a domestic, who managed to shepherd their six ...
Alex Haley and the Books that Changed a Nation
Alex Haley and the Books that Changed a Nation Adam Henig Book Review In Alex Haley and the Books that Changed a Nation, Robert J. Norrell, professor of history at the University of Tennessee, Knoxvi...
Reputations Fade Away
Reputations Fade Away Kam Williams Book Review ’I can understand and relate to why most black men are giving up on life, especially the ones my age’ Only a few of us mak...
The Rich and the Rest of Us
The Rich and the Rest of Us Kam Williams Book Review “This book serves as a counterpoint to [those] who luxuriate in denying the reality of America’s poor… Poverty of all colors ...
High Price: A Neuroscientist’s Journey of Self-Discovery That Challenges Everything You Kn
High Price: A Neuroscientist’s Journey of Self-Discovery That Challenges Everything You Kn Kam Williams Book Review “As a youth, Carl Hart didn’t realize the value of school; he studied ...
Promises to Keep
Promises to Keep Thumper Book Review Your beloved son is murdered and your family slowly begins falling apart. How do you hold it all together, your family, yourself and find the murderer of your s...
Destini the Chocolate Princess
Destini the Chocolate Princess Robert Fleming Book Review Joan Wright Lewis’ novel, Destini the Chocolate Princess, reveals a terrible affliction in our community; the degree of self-loathing b...
Corridors of Genius
Corridors of Genius Robert Fleming Book Review So many conflicting words have been written about the King of Pop, Michael Joseph Jackson, (1958-2009). Glenda R. Taylor’s Corridors of Genius tak...
Virginia Hamilton: Speeches
Virginia Hamilton: Speeches Kam Williams Book Review ’In the 35 years between the publication of her first book and her death in 2002, Virginia Hamilton earned a place of honor in the p...
The Icarus Girl
The Icarus Girl Paige Turner Book Review Jessamy Harrison is an eight year-old, Afro-British girl, who writes haiku, reads Shakespeare, and just skipped a grade in school. Jess’ parents...
Buddy Guy: When I Left Home — My Story
Buddy Guy: When I Left Home — My Story Robert Fleming Book Review When I Left Home, the memoir of legendary blue guitarist Buddy Guy, with support from noted writer David Ritz, traces the musician ...
Rainbow in the Cloud: The Wisdom and Spirit of Maya Angelou
Rainbow in the Cloud: The Wisdom and Spirit of Maya Angelou Kam Williams Book Review “‘Words mean more than what is set down on paper,’ Maya Angelou wrote in her groundbreaking m...
Detroit
Detroit Kam Williams ../reviews/images/detroit.jpg Film Review Claustrophobic Docudrama Revisits ’67 Riots through the Prism of Infamous Interrogation at Algiers Hotel Very Good (★ύ...
Women of a New Tribe
Women of a New Tribe Kam Williams Book Review African-American females have had a very difficult history: from slavery to racism to poverty. Although slavery has been abolished in this country, a...
Harlem Crossroads
Harlem Crossroads Kam Williams Book Review ’The story I tell begins with an introductory account of how photography came to Harlem- that is, how Harlem became, after the Renaissance and at...
Rockin around That Christmas Tree
Rockin around That Christmas Tree Thumper Book Review Denise Morrison has been married to her husband Edward Morrison for over 27 years. The couple has two children, Anthony and Christine.&nb...
Praise Song for the Butterflies
Praise Song for the Butterflies Tony Lindsay Book Review An effective novelist can change reality with their fiction. Many writers see and experience things that are unjust, and they react. They writ...
A Song for Gwendolyn Brooks
A Song for Gwendolyn Brooks Neoma Nwasike Book Review Gwendolyn Brooks was a very influential African American poet who became the first Black writer to win a Pulitzer Prize award (Poetry). In the ch...
Womanish Theology
Womanish Theology Eryka Parker Book Review “How differently would Black girls see the world or themselves had they [been] represented and treated as imago Dei [created in the image and likeness...
Incognito: An American Odyssey of Race and Self-Discovery
Incognito: An American Odyssey of Race and Self-Discovery Kam Williams Book Review I grabbed the phone and punched in the number… my heart pounding… My dad… Thirty years late...
Squirrels & Puppies: Dark Morality Tales
Squirrels & Puppies: Dark Morality Tales Robert Fleming Book Review In the foreword of Squirrels & Puppies, Mebane’s second book, the author has fun with the reader, saying in a tongue-in...
Inner-City Interludes
Inner-City Interludes Jayne Cubbage Book Review Inner-City Interludes by Hoezee probably won’t go down in history as a literary classic. Perhaps as an ode to the ’hood’ and...
Billionaires & Ballot Bandits: How to Steal an Election in 9 Easy Steps
Billionaires & Ballot Bandits: How to Steal an Election in 9 Easy Steps Kam Williams Book Review “When I was a boy traveling in Latin America, I saw colonial societies that were essentially m...
Go Cook Something: A Cooking Survival Guide for Active Independent Children
Go Cook Something: A Cooking Survival Guide for Active Independent Children Kam Williams Book Review "My Mom and Dad separated when I was still in Underoos, so I’ve had to help Mom a lot&hell...
It Was The Devil All Along: A Memoir
It Was The Devil All Along: A Memoir Robert Fleming Book Review Her name is Avalon Soulette Brown, a God-sent woman who happens to be an accomplished nurse from Newark, New Jersey, and still lives ...
The Survival Bible
The Survival Bible Kam Williams Book Review ’On April 13th, 1999, I was released from federal prison after serving 7 years for being ignorant. Yeah, I was a dope dealer’...
Why Every Black Woman Should Marry a Jewish Man
Why Every Black Woman Should Marry a Jewish Man Kam Williams Book Review “How many times have we heard successful African-American women complain they can’t find a good man? Everyone h...
U.S. v. Bush
U.S. v. Bush Kam Williams Book Review ’After analyzing the evidence in light of the applicable law, I’ve determined that we already have more than enough information to allow a re...
My Holy Bible for African-American Children King James Version
My Holy Bible for African-American Children King James Version Kam Williams Book Review "If you’re walking down the right path and you’re willing to keep walking, eventually you’l...
Come by Here
Come by Here Thumper Book Review I found a pearl when I happened upon the remarkable author Clarence Major. I discovered Clarence Major by way of an anthology, titled After Hours edited by Robert ...
Eye on the Struggle: Ethel Payne
Eye on the Struggle: Ethel Payne Kam Williams Book Review “This groundbreaking biography… illuminates the life and accomplishments of pioneering journalist Ethel Lois Payne, while also...
Why We Laugh
Why We Laugh Kam Williams images/whywelaugh.jpg Film Review Reverential Documentary Pays Homage to Black Pioneers of Comedy Why We Laugh Click to order via Amazon Unrated Running time:...
Behind those Books (press release)
Behind those Books (press release) Troy Johnson images/behindthosebooks.jpg Film Review Behind Those Books: A Thought Provoking Documentary Tackling Societal Ills Through Literature Behind Th...
One Foot in Love
One Foot in Love Thumper Book Review Bil Wright, author of Sunday You Learn to Box, has returned with his wonderful sophomore effort, One Foot in Love. I loved Wright’s debut novel and was an...
Lookin’ For Luv
Lookin’ For Luv Thumper Book Review I gotta be honest with y’all, I wasn’t expecting too much from this book when I picked it up. I wanted to read it because the author Carl Weber somet...
(1)ne Drop: Shifting the Lens on Race
(1)ne Drop: Shifting the Lens on Race Kam Williams Book Review “What exactly is Blackness and what does it mean to be Black? Is Blackness a matter of biology or consciousness? Who determines...
Skid Row
Skid Row Kam Williams skid_r12.jpg Film Review Rapper Goes Undercover to Shed Light on Plight of the Homeless Skid Row Click to order via Amazon Rated R for drug use and profanit...
Stand Your Ground: Black Bodies and the Justice of God
Stand Your Ground: Black Bodies and the Justice of God Kam Williams Book Review “Why is it becoming increasingly acceptable to kill unarmed black children? Why are they so easily perceived as...
Long Fall
Long Fall Thumper Book Review I started Walter Mosley’s The Long Fall with a bit of left over anger and some anticipation. I’m not going to lie, I did not ever think that I would feel...
My Mother’s Mother by Maryse Conde
My Mother’s Mother by Maryse Conde Thumper Book Review One of my favorite authors in the whole wide world is back with a new novel that I loved, loved, loved! Maryse Condé's latest novel...
The Billion Dollar BET
The Billion Dollar BET Rondall Brasher Book Review Brett Pulley goes all in with The Million Dollar BET, Robert Johnson and the Inside Story of Black Entertainment Television. He has woven a tale of...
Born into Brothels
Born into Brothels Kam Williams born_i24.jpg Film Review Academy Award-Winning Documentary Showing at Human Rights Watch Festival Born into Brothels Click to order vi...
Rent a Rasta
Rent a Rasta Kam Williams rent_a11.jpg Film Review Jamaican Sex Tourism the Subject of Steamy Documentary Rent a Rasta Click to order via Amazon DVD Review by Kam Williams Very good (2...
Shayla Sweet and Her Magical Pen
Shayla Sweet and Her Magical Pen Denolyn Carroll Book Review “…And a little child shall lead them…” (Isaiah 11:6 NKJV). While spending summer break at her grandmother Nani&...
Black Hands White House: Slave Labor and the Making of America
Black Hands White House: Slave Labor and the Making of America Robert Fleming Book Review Renee K. Harrison, an associate professor of African American and US religious history at Howard University, ...
My Hair Can
My Hair Can Shaundale Rénā Book Review Profoundly inspiring, My Hair Can is a picture book full of wit and charm. Each page is vibrant and affirms joy and positivity for little Black boys and girls a...
Goony Goo-Goo and Ga-Ga Too!
Goony Goo-Goo and Ga-Ga Too! Kelly Starling Lyons Book Review Drawing inspiration from her own children, author Kia Morgan Smith has written a fun picture book about the trials and triumphs of ...
Thank You, Omu!
Thank You, Omu! Neoma Nwasike Book Review How important is community to you? Is it at the epicenter of your heart, and do the people who make up your unique and wonderful community, allow you to thri...
Ordinary Girls: A Memoir
Ordinary Girls: A Memoir Brenda M. Greene Book Review Jaquira Diaz, in her memoir Ordinary Girls, crafts a story that illustrates the intersection of race, ethnicity, sexuality, and poverty on the li...
Oil and Water and Other Things That don’t Mix
Oil and Water and Other Things That don’t Mix Robert Fleming Book Review If you take a trip to the once-scenic Gulf Coast, you will see there is more to be done in the restoration and rejuvenation...
Different and the Same
Different and the Same AALBC Staff Writer Book Review In an age where there is a proliferation of emotional and physical Black trauma, that is videotaped and viewed widely online, we should strive to...
Hair Power - Skin Revolution: A Collection of Poems and Personal Essays by Black and Mixed-Race Wome
Hair Power - Skin Revolution: A Collection of Poems and Personal Essays by Black and Mixed-Race Wome Kam Williams Book Review "I can honestly say I have a passion for language… I enjoy writi...
The New Brownies’ Book
The New Brownies’ Book Clarence V. Reynolds Book Review In the November 1910 premier issue of The Crisis, the official journal of the NAACP, historian, scholar, civil rights activist, sociologist, an...