Six great books on the rise and impact of hip-hop

Lindsay Powers is a book lover, writer (bylines include The New York Times and The Washington Post), and author of You Can’t F*ck Up Your Kids: A Judgment-Free Guide to Stress-Free Parenting. At the Amazon Book Review she tagged six great books with which to celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop. One title on the list:

Tupac Shakur by Staci Robinson

This biography—the only one authorized by the artist’s family—has been 20 years in the making. Staci Robinson wrote her first draft decades ago, then put it aside for her other book and screenwriting projects, before returning to the story she always wanted to tell. Robinson is closely connected to Tupac’s family—he crashed on her couch when he was a teenager with big dreams who was trying to launch his career, and his activist mother, Afeni, a famous member of the Black Panther party, was a mentor. And this memoir is worth the wait: It includes handwritten notes from Tupac that give readers insight into his poetic, wise mind; details from intimate conversations; and insight into the experiences that shaped his worldview. This biography, due out in October, paints a rich portrait of a young man who was shot and killed at just age 25, leaving readers pondering how his legacy could have been even greater if only he lived longer.

Read about the other entries on the list.

--Marshal Zeringue