Tag Archives: book review

Book Review: The Age Begins by Oneal Walters

October 27, 2009 Joey Pinkney 5 Comments

The Age Begins
by Oneal Walters
(The Age Begins Books)
4.5 out of 5 Stars

With The Age Begins, Oneal Walters puts his heartbeats on paper. When a writer is a poet, the literature is filled with poetic elements. Oneal Walters is a poet that is a writer. The Age Begins is a poetic assemblage that shows, through verse and concept, the story of a working man who is also a struggling, educated poet. From “Born Again” to “Finding Pleasure” to “A Special Proceeding”, Walters gives the reader a candid peak inside of a poet’s perspective.

This is a poetry book that cannot be judged for simply being a poetry book, nor can it be judged by the illustration on the book’s cover. The cuddling camels and prodigious palace in a vast desert conjure Saharan images complete with flying carpets and magical lamps. Instead, The Age Begins is steeped in the complexity of love, the challenges of finding a fulfilling job and the toils of gaining respect as a writer.

From the poem “Passionate”:

Perhaps when unseeing writers write
Books become loveless.
The best avenue for reviving
Breathless books is to
Breathe in the outward
Cries of the people

The Age Begins reads like the soundtrack of the life of a person seeking truth with his poetry and precision with his heart. Like any true poet, the main character’s passion is for the artistic purity of writing. Walter deftly depicts the rejection by the hands of the gatekeepers of the publishing world. Then there are the people who claim they will help, but never do. There is also the underlying encounter between the main character and a female that brings a heightened level of sexual and intellectual complexity.

The reoccurring bus trips and genuine conversations with the female were especially poignant. The main character shares his innermost secrets, his innermost thoughts. The reader gets an exchange that is transparent and more enriching than the manufactured struggles of a romance novel. Walters manages to give the best definition of the concept of love I have ever come across in “Explain Love”.

From the poem “Strongest Female”:

I’m leaving this bus, one last time,
She’s “the one” I said a few times.
Understanding her makes me happy
Accepting her strengths inspires me.

There is a section of The Age Begins that deals with something that is very close to home for many people: the effects of an economic recession. Walters becomes a journalist in the true sense of the word as he details the ravaging effects that the lack of love and money can have on a marriage. Poems like “BETRAYAL” and “Curse and Be Cursed” tell the story of mental deterioration under the strangle of distress.

From the poem “Cursed and Be Cursed”:

Perry is fired today.
He watches the time
To see if I will be
Fired too.

All in all, The Age Begins is more than slick rhyme schemes that skim over abstract ideas in order to affront cuteness. If you are looking for composition that is more reality that fantasy, this is a collection of life’s poetry: brutally honest and deceptively beautiful.

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Book Review: Damaged Goods by Tyra Denine

October 14, 2009 Joey Pinkney 7 Comments

Damaged Goods
by Tyra Denine
(Double Dap Books)
5 out of 5 Stars

Tyra Denine’s Damaged Goods is powerful memoir that gives an inside look at the abusive environment that rob girls of their innocence in the poverty stricken neighborhoods scattered across America. You can judge this book by the cover. Before you can open Damaged Goods, you are confronted by the image of a naked woman. She is far from the eye candy Black readers have been spoiled with over the past couple of decades. Scratched up and chained to a box, she is a bitter pill–a reminder of a reality.

Chattel slavery lasted for over 460 years in America. Although Denine doesn’t discuss it directly, the effects of that holocaust can be witnessed in her autobiographic tale. The exhausting struggle for survival madeDenine’s mother into a mad mixture of one part love and three parts sadism. Growing up the middle child of five girls, Denine’s life was akin to a violently deranged Cinderella story. Physical, mental and sexual abuse came from all angles, not just her father and mother. Her uncles and neighbors also had free reign to beatDenine and her sisters for the smallest infraction. After her parents’ divorce, her step-father’s sexual advances while she was a pre-teen was just as disturbing as her choice to give her virginity before it was taken from her later in her teenage years.

As Denine matured into womanhood, and eventually motherhood, her life remained jagged. From the attempted rape during her teenage years to her Pro-Black ex-husband who had a penchant for White women, Damaged Goods did not fizzle out in terms of intensity. The pace slowed and the tone matured during the time she spends in the Navy, but the drama is ever-present. The effects of the abuse was seen in her low self-esteem, yet the strength and beauty of her soul remained intact. It is this strength and beauty that eventually emerged from its cocoon. That little girl with scars on her face from the slaps of her mother is now an author/publisher through God’s grace and mercy.

While portraying the ugliness of her life, Denine really sheds light on what makes her so resilient. Denine effortlessly blends her disturbing commentary with well-timed poetry. If Damaged Goods was a musical, the poems sprinkled throughout the book would be the soundtrack. With rhythms and rhymes perfectly in tune with her story, her poetry offers peaceful moments of reflection in a otherwise turbulent confession.

The prologue of Damaged Goods is so powerfully written, I wondered what the rest of the book could bring. As each chapter came and went, I felt like I was sitting in a room with Denine , glued to her every word. I listened, not because I was nosy. I listened because I was concerned about just how much she could bear before she lost her mind, her life or both. This is the perfect book for the person who thinks all is lost. Denine’s Damaged Goods is the perfect and fitting example of the cliche “everybody has a story”.

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Book Review: The Storm is Over by Kelvin Lassiter

September 21, 2009 Joey Pinkney 10 Comments

The Storm is Over: Quotes for Achievement and Success
by Kelvin Lassiter
(Lasstime, LLC)
5 out of 5 Stars

Kelvin Lassiter’s The Storm is Over: Quotes for Achievement and Success is far more than a bunch of quotes and random thoughts. The Storm is Over is more like a manual for overcoming life’s struggles from an author who is full of wisdom and passion.

I was once told that to gain a better understanding of a book, you have to know who the author is. Lassiter’s background as a motivational speaker and a strong Christian man shines through each commentary. Lassiter showed promise of intelligence early in life. Although he had a rocky young adulthood, he has risen to motivate communities to achieve greater things. The Storm is Over is an extension of his outreach.

Many self-help/motivational books simply drown you in good information. It’s like having a year’s supply of food and water shipped to your house in one day – overwhelming. With The Storm is Over, there are fifty-two quotes. Each quote and explanation are assigned to a certain week of the month.

This gives you a chance to read the quote and internalize the message by revisiting the week’s quote over the course of seven of days. This is good for two reasons: 1) it allows you to keep an informal schedule for utilizing the book’s wisdom and 2) it allows your to read the book one portion at a time for maximum effect.

The organization of the quote being on the left-hand page and the advice being on the right-hand page makes it easy read and digest the great information given in this book. Plus, the quotes are broken up in a way that you can use this book as a reference and come back to it time and time again. As Lassiter covers topics such as being open to change, ending the blame game and even using your brain’s full potential, it is Lassiter’s solid identification of the strength of the quote that makes this book a powerful document.

Lassiter’s strategic choice of the people from whom he drew quotes will not go unnoticed. From presidents to well known entrepreneurs to globally-recognized leaders of change, the quotes really hit home from people who have achieved amazing things. For instance, Bill Gates quote (“It’s Fine To Celebrate Success But It’s More Important To Heed The Lessons Of Failure”) is powerful because of the angle it takes on using failures as valuable learning tools.

Another quote that impressed me was “When It Rains, It Pours”. Although the quote is cliche, the advice given on the adjacent page is intricate and truly inspirational. There was only one quote that didn’t fully related to the advice given, but the quote and the advice were powerful enough to stand on their own merit. Lassiter ends each section with an affirmation to repeat. This allows you to harness the power of self-motivation as you continue forward with a more focused and fruitful life.

The Storm is Over is not only a book about self-improvement. This is also a book about being able to interact with people whether they are your customers (I Want Minimum Information Given With Maximum Politeness) and or your children (It Is Easier To Build Strong Children Than It Is To Heal Broken Men).

The Storm is Over urges you to take action. It urges you to move in a positive direction. The Storm is Over does this by giving your bite-sized steps to pursuing your life to its ultimate destiny and the space to incorporate its teachings into the fabric of your life.

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