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Premium Rush
Premium Rush Kam Williams premium-rush-movie-poster.jpg Film Review Manhattan Serves as Backdrop for Adrenaline-Fueled Bike Thriller Premium Rush (2012) In Theaters: Aug 24, 2012 Wide Rated PG-13 ...
Rush
Rush Kam Williams rush.jpg Film Review High-Octane Formula 1 Drama Recounts Death-Defying Racing Rivalry Rush In Theaters: Sep 27, 2013 Wide Rated R for profanity, nudity, sexuality, smoking, d...
Rush Hour 3
Rush Hour 3 Kam Williams rush_h2.jpg Film Review Chan and Tucker Teamed-Up Again to Chase Chinese Crooks around Paris Rush Hour 3 Click to order via Amazon Rated PG-13 for profa...
Dying Eyes Don’t Lie
Dying Eyes Don’t Lie Eryka Parker Book Review Set in 1981, Dying Eyes Don’t Lie by Keith Mosley is a genre-blending thriller that explores justice, community, and legacy through the eyes of two...
The Weird World of Blowfly
The Weird World of Blowfly Kam Williams blowfly.jpg Film Review Godfather of Rap Belatedly Gets His Due in Jaw-Dropping Bio-Pic The Weird World of Blowfly [2011] Click to order...
The Mighty Macs
The Mighty Macs Kam Williams images/mm2_photo.jpg Film Review Coach Inspires Team to Overachieve in Touching Tale of Female Empowerment The Mighty Macs Unrated Running time: 98 Minu...
Before I Forget
Before I Forget Thumper Book Review *giggling* I’m going to love writing this review. A little while ago, I read and finished a wonderful debut novel, Before I Forget by Leonard Pitt...
Baby Momma Drama
Baby Momma Drama Thumper Book Review Carl Weber’s new book is loaded with the type of drama I love, — unfiltered, full strength, wig snatching, "yo-momma’s-a-ho!" drama. ...
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...
Echoes of a Distant Summer
Echoes of a Distant Summer Thumper Book Review In Standing At The Scratch Line, Guy Johnson created one of the most memorable protagonists in literature with King Tremain. Johnson’s second no...
Relationships
Relationships Tiffany M. Davis Book Review Leonard Jenkins II’s first book, Relationships (Volume I): Lessons Before Dying, is a tale of love (finding it, losing it, keeping it) set against an ...
Not in My Family
Not in My Family Kam Williams Book Review ’Black America, we have a problem. HIV/AIDS is running rampant through our communities. Many of us are sick and dying and living in fear and shame...
The Last King
The Last King Thumper Book Review Now is a time of rejoicing. Nichelle Tramble has finally released her much anticipated second novel, The Last King: A Maceo Redfield novel. I have been...
Hunting In Harlem
Hunting In Harlem Thumper Book Review I am always excited when new authors enter the scene because they expand the dimensions of our existence through literature that is vibrant, challenging and im...
Harlem Godfather
Harlem Godfather Idrissa Uqdah Book Review Bumpy’s Widow Tells Her Story Harlem Godfather: The Rap on my Husband, Ellsworth ’Bumpy’ Johnson has been a long time coming on the h...
Well Considered By Richard Morris
Well Considered By Richard Morris Robert Fleming Book Review Some critics have often said white authors cannot capture the soul and passion of African American characters, but that is not the case ...
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 ...
The Central Park Five: A Chronicle of a City Wilding
The Central Park Five: A Chronicle of a City Wilding Kam Williams Book Review “In 1990, Anton McCray, Kevin Richardson, Korey Wise, Yusef Salaam and Raymond Santana, Jr. [were] convicted and...
We Need to Talk
We Need to Talk Kam Williams images/51Icf9mwW+L._SL500_AA300_.jpg Film Review Sisters Make Most of Opportunity to Reflect on Relationships in Latest Documentary from Janks Morton We ...
Gotta Keep On Tryin'
Gotta Keep On Tryin' Idrissa Uqdah Book Review In the sequel to the novel, Tryin’ To Sleep In The Bed You Made, life-long friends Gayle Saunders and Patricia (Pat) Reid are together ...
Take Me to the River
Take Me to the River Kam Williams take-me-to-the-river-300.jpg Film Review Take Me to the River (2014) In Theaters: Sep 12, 2014 Limited Rated: PG Running Time: 95 Minutes Musical & Performi...
Cop Out
Cop Out Kam Williams images/img28.jpg Film Review Tracy Morgan and Bruce Willis Co-Star in Mismatched Cops Comedy Cop Out Rated R for pervasive profanity, sexual references, violence and br...
Crazy Rich: Power
Crazy Rich: Power Kam Williams Book Review “Heirs to a Band-Aid and Baby Powder fortune, the Johnsons have enjoyed unimaginable wealth since Johnson & Johnson was founded in 1886—bu...
Rhythm for Sale
Rhythm for Sale Kam Williams Book Review “I went into the Countee Cullen library… and saw a book titled: The Harlem Renaissance: A Historical Dictionary for the Era… I peeked i...
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...
Black Silk
Black Silk Thumper Book Review Black Silk: A Collection of African American Erotica is an anthology that cheers the sexual, sensual side of African-Americans in literature told through short stories ...
Surviving Chaos, How I Found Peace at A Beach Bar
Surviving Chaos, How I Found Peace at A Beach Bar Carol Taylor Book Review Surviving Chaos: How I Found Peace At A Beach Bar is Harold Phifer’s memoir of childhood abuse, family dysfunction, an...
Peony’s Daughters
Peony’s Daughters Idrissa Uqdah Book Review A Mother With Crosses To Bear Although not categorized as Christian Fiction, Peony’s Daughters by Leceila Turnage is a very spiritual read w...
Life as a Single Mom
Life as a Single Mom Kam Williams Book Review ’’Being a single mom isn't easy,’ is something I hear constantly over and over throughout my travels, and I mostly hear it fro...
The Courage to Hope: How I Stood Up to the Politics of Fear
The Courage to Hope: How I Stood Up to the Politics of Fear Kam Williams Book Review “In the summer of 2010, Shirley Sherrod was catapulted into a media storm that blew apart her life…...
Known to Evil
Known to Evil Thumper Book Review Walter Mosley is back with the second installment of his new, magnificent Lenoid McGill Mystery series, Known to Evil. Believe it or not, I got my hands on Known...
Magic Mike
Magic Mike Kam Williams magic-mike.jpg Film Review Channing Tatum Stars as Reluctant Stripper in Riveting, Character-Driven Drama Magic Mike In Theaters: Jun 29, 2012 Wide Rated R for profanity, ...
The Stork Market
The Stork Market Kam Williams Book Review ’Adoption pits woman against woman, rich against poor, making it painfully difficult to look at and admit. Adoption is racist and classist and of...
Liberalism Is a Mental Disorder
Liberalism Is a Mental Disorder Kam Williams Book Review "The single biggest threat facing America is the rise of Islamofascism in this country. While the throat-cutters in dirty nightshirts ...
The Last King of Scotland
The Last King of Scotland Kam Williams the_la56.jpg Film Review Forest Whitaker Delivers Oscar-Quality Performance in Implausible Portrait of Ugandan Dictator The Last King of Scotland - Film...
Uncle Tom: A Oral History of the American Black Conservative
Uncle Tom: A Oral History of the American Black Conservative Troy Johnson https://aalbc.com/reviews/images/Uncle-tom-movie-poster.jpg Film Review Rating: NR Genre: Documentary Directed By: Just...
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...
Accountable: Making America as Good as Its Promise
Accountable: Making America as Good as Its Promise Kam Williams Book Review Last year, Tavis Smiley took a lot of heat over his reluctance to rubber-stamp Barack Obama’s candidacy simply ...
Oreo
Oreo Thumper Book Review I’m thinking, pondering, you might say, that possibly the sign of a good book isn’t the fact that it is in print. Maybe, the sign of a good book should be wheth...
The Miseducation of Obi Ifeanyi by Chinedu Achebe
The Miseducation of Obi Ifeanyi by Chinedu Achebe Robert Fleming Book Review Some of the world’s finest fiction has been written by Nigerians. Let’s look at the writers from that area in...
Kickin’ It Old School
Kickin’ It Old School Kam Williams kickin6.jpg Film Review Patient Emerges from 20-Year Coma to Breakdance Again in Bad Taste Comedy Kickin’ It Old School Rated PG-13 for profanity, ethn...
My Brother
My Brother Kam Williams my_bro3.jpg Film Review Big Brother Cares for Mentally-Challenged Sibling in Moving Melodrama My Brother Click to order via Amazon THEATRICAL RELEASE Mar 16, 2007 Li...
The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution
The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution Kam Williams black-pathers-movie-poster.jpg Film Review The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution In Theaters: Sep 2, 2015 Limited Runtime: 1 hr....
25 Things That Really Matter In Life
25 Things That Really Matter In Life Kam Williams Book Review ’25 Things That Really Matter in Life is designed to get you started living a better life within the next fifteen minute...
The Face That Changed It All
The Face That Changed It All Kam Williams Book Review “Beverly Johnson made history in 1974… [as] the first African-American woman… whose face appeared on the cover of the world...
Sankofa University: Studying African-Centered History and Culture
Sankofa University: Studying African-Centered History and Culture Robert Fleming Book Review Dr. Burnett Kwadwo Gallman’s Sankofa University: Studying African-Centered History And Culture, is a...
You're a Worthwhile Person
You're a Worthwhile Person Jayne Cubbage Book Review you're a Worthwhile Person in More Ways Than a Million by Simeon Johnson is an enjoyable, frank and honest read that lauds the everyday p...
Remembering Roots: How an American Classic Transformed the World
Remembering Roots: How an American Classic Transformed the World Robert Fleming Book Review Unfortunately, there were efforts to demean the late Alex Haley’s Roots: The Saga of an American Family whe...
Getting Our Breath Back
Getting Our Breath Back Linda Watkins Book Review Getting Our Breath Back, the debut novel, by author Shawne Johnson, is not your ordinary read. Passionate words float with a hypnotic, poetic rhythm ...
Digital Coup: The Conspiracy to Thwart Global Democracy
Digital Coup: The Conspiracy to Thwart Global Democracy Shanida Carter Book Review “Democracy around the globe is facing its greatest threat since World War II,” writes author Darin Johnson, who beli...
A Streetcar Named Desire (Review of the Broadway Play)
A Streetcar Named Desire (Review of the Broadway Play) Troy Johnson atreetcardposter.jpg Film Review Parker & Underwood Bring New Brilliance to Williams’ Streetcar Tennessee Williams&...
Eden
Eden Thumper Book Review Eden, the debut novel by Olympia Vernon, is a powerful coming of age tale. It is an extraordinary novel, one that offers magnificent artistry in addition to the unveiling o...
Resurrecting Midnight by Eric Jerome Dickey
Resurrecting Midnight by Eric Jerome Dickey Thumper Book Review Man, I must have been knocked out for a long ass time. I had to take a leave of absence for three years because I had to go bac...
Butterfly Rising
Butterfly Rising Troy Johnson images/tanya_wright.jpg Film Review A Letter from Tanya Wright Tanya Wright author/writer/director, BUTTERFLY RISING My name is Tanya Wright. I am an actress...
Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention
Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention Robert Fleming Book Review Dr. Manning Marable, a professor of history at Columbia University and author of fifteen books, knew how important and controversial ...
If There Be Pain
If There Be Pain Jayne Cubbage Book Review On the surface it appears that Gloria Mallette has designed her latest novel, If There Be Pain to read like a chronicle of the life of Kyle Lawson, a selfi...
The Pirogue
The Pirogue Kam Williams la-pirogue.jpg Film Review Senegalese Peasants Set Out for Spain in Seafaring Tale of Survival La Pirogue (2012) In Theaters: Jan 23, 2013 Limited Directed By: Moussa TourÃ...
We Are Together
We Are Together Kam Williams we_are7.jpg Film Review Musical Documentary Examines Plight of South African AIDS Orphans We Are Together (Thins Simunye) Rated PG for mat...
Selected Poems of Calvin C. Hernton
Selected Poems of Calvin C. Hernton Robert Fleming Book Review Back in the day, Calvin C. Hernton, a poet, scholar, and essayist, was considered a literary maverick, an outspoken advocate of truth-te...
The Womanizers
The Womanizers Thumper Book Review How can I put this,The Womanizers by Dwayne S. Joseph could be classified as a literary "throwback"? Although the novel is not as wearable as a replica o...
United in Anger: A History of ACT UP
United in Anger: A History of ACT UP Kam Williams united-in-anger.jpg Film Review Riveting Gay Rights Retrospective Revisits Rise of AIDS Activism Movement United in Anger: A History of ACT ...
Tavis Smiley Books
Tavis Smiley Books Lynne d. Johnson Book Review Tavis Smiley, syndicated radio and BET talk-show host, is committed to making the world a better place. This is his mission. His first book, Doing What...
Thunder Soul
Thunder Soul Kam Williams images/thundersoul.jpg Film Review Reverential Bio-Pic Pays Tribute to Legendary H.S. Bandleader Thunder Soul Rated PG for smoking and mild epithets Running time: ...
In Spite of the Consequences: Prison Letters on Exoneration, Abolition, and Freedom
In Spite of the Consequences: Prison Letters on Exoneration, Abolition, and Freedom Robert Fleming Book Review If you were politically conscious decades ago, you would have read the prison chronicles...
Hip-Hop: A Cultural Odyssey
Hip-Hop: A Cultural Odyssey Troy Johnson Book Review Hip-Hop Culture’s first OFFICIAL luxury, large format coffee table book will inspire, entertain and educate all generations of readers wit...
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...
Never Die Alone
Never Die Alone Troy Johnson never_19.jpg Film Review The following is not a review, but informational material for the movie NEVER DIE ALONE Order Movie-Original Pos...
When Chickenheads Come Home to Roost: My Life as a Hip-Hop Feminist
When Chickenheads Come Home to Roost: My Life as a Hip-Hop Feminist Lynne d. Johnson Book Review Hip-hop has intrinsically woven itself into the fabric of Americana. The culture, music, icons, and p...
Dark Dreams
Dark Dreams Thumper Book Review Author Brandon Massey (Thunderland, Dark Corner) has compiled a magnificent anthology designed to scare and terrify. Although African-American literature ha...
After Hours
After Hours Thumper Book Review Honestly (as if there’s any other way I can come), I wasn’t going to read After Hours: A Collection of Erotic Writing by Black Men, the latest anthology ...
Gay Rebel of the Harlem Ren…
Gay Rebel of the Harlem Ren… Thumper Book Review Richard Bruce Nugent is the best well-kept secret of the Harlem Renaissance. Nugent isn’t unheard of in the annals of the Renaissance; ...
I Am Not Your Negro
I Am Not Your Negro Kam Williams https://aalbc.com/authors/images/im-not-your-negro.jpg Film Review Oscar-Nominated Documentary Inspired by James Baldwin’s Unfinished Manuscript Excellent (...
Grace After Midnight: A Memoir
Grace After Midnight: A Memoir Troy Johnson Book Review This Review Appears in the Fall 2007 Issue of Harlem World Magazine Felicia “Snoop” Pearson, of...
John Oliver Killens: A Life of Black Literary Activism
John Oliver Killens: A Life of Black Literary Activism Thumper Book Review I was looking forward to reading Keith Gilyard’s biography, John Oliver Killens: A Life of Black Literary Activism. J...
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,...
Malcolm X: A Graphic Biography
Malcolm X: A Graphic Biography Troy Johnson Book Review The age of multitasking needs better narrative history. It must be absolutely factual, immediately accessible, smart, and brilliantly fun....
Post-Traumatic
Post-Traumatic Robert Fleming Book Review Chantal Johnson’s debut novel, Post-Traumatic, confronts the emotional toll of sexual assault, a real-life survivor narrative, with the prickly residue...
Booker’s Place: A Mississippi Story
Booker’s Place: A Mississippi Story Troy Johnson books-place.jpg Film Review Booker’s Place: A Mississippi Story Booker’s Place: A Mississippi Story Click to rent or buy th...
Bound: Africans vs. African-Americans
Bound: Africans vs. African-Americans Troy Johnson bound.jpg Film Review A description of Bound, not a film review follows: Bound: Africans vs. African-Americans (2015)Buy via Amazon or ...
Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise
Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise Kam Williams /reviews/images/maya-angelou-older.jpg Film Review An Intimate Look at the Life of Iconic Poet, Writer, and Activist Excellent (4 stars) In Theaters...
The Ancestors
The Ancestors Thumper Book Review The Ancestors is an anthology featuring stories by authors L.A. Banks, Tananarive Due and Brandon Massey. I am always happy to come across science fiction ...
Wake Up Everybody
Wake Up Everybody Paige Turner Book Review I play the street life cuz there’s no place I can go Street Life - it’s the only life I know Street Life - there’s a thousand parts to pla...
A Woman’s Worth
A Woman’s Worth Thumper Book Review I’m forewarning everyone, if…no, when I see Tracy Price-Thompson, whoever is closest to me, grab me, because I’m going to try my best to slap h...
The Original Black Elite: Daniel Murray and the Story of a Forgotten Era
The Original Black Elite: Daniel Murray and the Story of a Forgotten Era Troy Johnson Book Review I grew up in New York City’s East Harlem during the 60s and 70s. Virtually all my peers were Bl...
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...
Lizzie & McKenzie’s Fabulous Adventures: Mayhem in Madrid
Lizzie & McKenzie’s Fabulous Adventures: Mayhem in Madrid Troy Johnson Book Review Lizzie & McKenzie’s Fabulous Adventures: Mayhem in Madrid is the first book in a series of chapter books t...
Flesh: The Disappearance of Portia Barrington
Flesh: The Disappearance of Portia Barrington Robert Fleming Book Review As the author of over a dozen novels including the bestselling Little Girl Lost series, Keith Lee Johnson has created his ...
African Venus
African Venus Troy Johnson Book Review The sculpture, on the cover of Sheryl K. Carkhum-Lord’s novel was created by artist by Charles Henri Joseph Cordier in 1851. Dubbed, by the artist, &ldquo...
black misery
black misery Troy Johnson Book Review Misery is when you heardon the radio that the neighborhoodyou live in is a slum butyou always thought it was home” black misery is a pictur...
Half My Size: How I Ate To Lose 150lbs
Half My Size: How I Ate To Lose 150lbs Troy Johnson Book Review Ten years ago, Caroline Jhingory lost 150 pounds. She has maintained it to this day without gastric bypass surgery, fad diets or comm...
Blowback
Blowback Lynne d. Johnson Book Review Blowback is a term that was first used by the CIA in a report on the 1953 operation to overthrow the government of Mohammed Mossadegh in Iran. The term is actual...
Nappy Hair
Nappy Hair Troy Johnson Book Review One nap of her hair is the only perfect circle in nature. —from Nappy Hair I recently purchased Nappy Hair and have read it to my daughters. I must say c...
Carmen & Geoffrey
Carmen & Geoffrey Kam Williams carmen47.jpg Film Review Endearing Documentary Examines Enduring Marriage and Careers of Celebrated Couple Carmen & Geoffrey Unrated Running ...
The Henry Louis Gates
The Henry Louis Gates Robert Fleming Book Review Henry Louis Gates, Jr., one of the nation’s most acclaimed scholars, is a masterful jack of all trades, including educator, editor, critic and ...
Ain’t But a Few of Us: Black Music Writers Tell Their Story
Ain’t But a Few of Us: Black Music Writers Tell Their Story Robert Fleming Book Review Jazz is dead! If you believe that mess, you must not listen to radio or read any of the mainstream media. Howeve...
In Search of Nella Larsen
In Search of Nella Larsen Thumper Book Review I’m back! It’s good to be back, although I have to tell you that it took me a minute to find groove, before I was able to fall int...
Visible Lives: Three Stories in Tribute to E. Lynn Harris
Visible Lives: Three Stories in Tribute to E. Lynn Harris Thumper Book Review Visible Lives: Three Stories in Tribute to E. Lynn Harris is an anthology aptly described by its title. The authors, Te...
Life Is A Canvas
Life Is A Canvas Carol Taylor Book Review Life is a Canvas is a contemporary novel about finding love and self and how the choices we make early in life, particularly in our twenties, sets us on a pa...
Black Pulp
Black Pulp Robert Fleming Book Review In his succinct introduction, award-winning novelist Walter Mosley, creator of the noted private eye Easy Rawlins, explains the appeal of fiction printed i...
Mojo: Conjure Stories
Mojo: Conjure Stories Thumper Book Review Mojo: Conjure Stories, edited by author Nalo Hopkinson is an excellent anthology of short stories that include the occult, folktales and voodoo. The ...