Aaliyah Bilal vs Jada Pinkett Smith

Today I added two books to the site:

Temple Folk by Aaliyah Bilal and Worthy by Jada Pinkett Smith

Both books are enjoying a great deal of notoriety right now. Worthy simply because it is about Jada and Temple Folk because it is critically acclaimed and a finalist for this year's National Book Award for Fiction. 

I could care less about Jada's book.  The media is besides themselves all excited about the revelation that she and Will have been separated for 7 years {yawn}. My feelings have nothing to do with Jada personally, it is just my inability to comprehend our culture's fascination with celebrity gossip.

Now Aaliyah's book sounds far more interesting to me.  Her's is a fictionalized account of people in Nation of Islam. It sounds fascinating and not anything I'm aware that anyone has written about in this fashion.  I can't imagine anyone doing it during the Nation's prime. 

I think Aaliyah's talk at the DC bookstore Politics and Prose is worth checking out. @Pioneer1 this might be something up your alley.

For the Jada Pinkett Smith fans don't let me dissuade you from checking out her book.  Here she is on the Today show with Hoda.  Though this story has been all over the internet and anyone minimally interested in the Smiths will find no relations here: