"By Any Means Necessary" is an excellent book on the making of the film "Malcolm X" by director Spike Lee. Not only do we get a chance to see the film from the director's eye, but we also get to read all of the hassles he had to go through in order to come out with a film in Hollywood.The whole tone of the book, like all of Lee's books on his firms, is that of a diary. So what we're reading is random notes, scribbles, and just little lines that he will remember down the line. It almost seemed like a match made in hell: Spike Lee, considered to be a "controversial" film director, does a film on the line of Malcolm X, considered to be a controversial human rights figure. Throughout the book, Lee has to remind himself that despite the nay-sayers, the film will be done, even at times when he doubts his own creative genius.There are also thoughts from some of the actors (including Denzel Washington, who also played Malcolm X in his early years), but the best words come from Lee

IF YOU LOVED THE MOVIE LIKE I DID THEN, YOU'VE GOT TO GET THIS BOOK. IT HAS EVERYTHING FOR THOSE OF YOU (LIKE ME) WHO CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF THIS FILM. IT CONTAINS SOME STORYBOARDS, THE PRODUCTION JOURNAL, PRODUCTION NOTES, THE CREDITS, THE ENTIRE SCRIPT (!), AND 32 PAGES WORTH OF PICTURES. FIND OUT WHAT SPIKE HAD TO GO THROUGH TO GET THIS FILM UP ON THE BIG SCREEN. IT'S A SHAME THAT SPIKE STOP PUTTING OUT THESE COMPANION VOLUMES TO HIS FEATURE FILMS AS HE DID FOR 5 OF HIS FIRST 6 FILMS. THEY (THE BOOKS) ARE A WELCOMED ADDITION THAT REVEAL A LOT ABOUT THE MAN AND HIS ART. THOUGH OUT OF PRINT, IT WOULD BEHOOVE YOU TO FIND A COPY OF THIS BOOK AND DO THE READ THING.

In 1995, I had a wonderful opportunity to check out "Five for Five", by Spike Lee, and I could not locate that particular book until I looked it up on Amazon,com, thanks!

An easy read that brings you from the Father of African American Cinema, Oscar Micheaux, in the 30's to the films of the 70's to the current films of Spike Lee and beyond, covering such films and filmmakers as Julie Dash with her "Daughters of the Dust". A good book that can be read by teens to adults.

Spikes Lee's gotta have it is an essential book for independent filmmakers. It's a book in three parts. The first part begins with an interview of Spike lee By Nelson George sometime after SGHI premiered and he became a big shot. But the second part is the most appealing. It is the production diary in which Spike goes into complete detail how he got she's gotta have it made. The Diary is from the intitla idea to postproduction. It's filled with loads of insights into the struggles he was up against. In fact it's so indepth he even mentiones when his heat and lights go out. Then finally theres the script, which is like the icing on the cake. Hard to find but worth it because you really get to understand how he works and how he got to where he is. Essential!

My two-year old daughter and four year old nephew love this book! There are items to count, colors to name, and of course the wonderful rythym of "please, baby, please." The illustrations are wonderful! The child in the picture could easily be a boy or girl, and the daily routines of the child in the book are similar to any toddler child's busy day. I will share this book for a long time!

I stumbled upon this book purely by accident. The picture on the cover caught my eye bcause the little girl's hair looks just like my daughters!! (No Joke) My daughter is 21/2 and absolutely loves this book! We replace baby with her name and she thinks it is the most hilarous thing she has ever heard. This book is a must for anyone with young children. Beautiful illustrations as well as a great little story.

Rarely does my 2-year old sit through a reading of a whole book. This one he does! And my 3-year old as well. They love chanting "Please, baby, please!" and the other variations of that phrase throughout the book. The story is fun and something that both my kids and I can relate to - an adorable toddler getting into trouble. The combination of excellent writing and beautiful illustrations make this a huge hit with my family!

FOR THOSE OF YOU (LIKE ME) THAT LOVED DO THE RIGHT THING AND CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF IT, HERE IS A LITTLE EXTRA CREDIT READING. THIS BOOK CONTAINS 5 ESSAYS THAT RUN THE GAMUT OF ISSUES AND TOPICS THAT INFLUENCED AND WERE COVERED IN THE MOVIE. SUCH THINGS AS MUSIC, RACISM, POLITICS, MARTIN LUTHER KING JR., MALCOLM X, VIOLENCE, AND OTHER CURRENT EVENTS OF THE TIME THAT HELP PUT THE FILM INTO PERSPECTIVE. WHILE THIS BOOK ISN'T FOR THE CASUAL READER, IT IS HERE FOR THOSE OF US THAT WISH TO DIG A LITTLE DEEPER INTO SPIKE LEE'S VISION OF NEW YORK (AND THE U.S.) CIRCA THE LATE '80'S. I ESPECIALLY ENJOYED AND RECOMMEND W. J. T. MITCHELL'S ESSAY "THE VIOLENCE OF PUBLIC ART". HERE IT IS. ENJOY.

A great book of Essays.Spike Lee is One OF The Very Few Artists in Hollywood saying Something.This Book Breaks Down Many Subject Matters.The Movie is a Timeless Classic.this Book adds upon it.a Must.

Spike Lee is usually brought up when people are talking about arrogant behavior. But in this book, he shows how basketball has changed over the years. I play and follow basketball and I thought this book was great. If you like basketball, professional sports, or Spike Lee, this is a book for you.

By and far the best book I have ever read. The content was not the most challenging but Spike Lee managed to tell his life story and intertwine it with the glory of the 70's New York Knicks teams and even inform the reader of his early cinematic musings. A great book for any Knick fan, Spike Lee fan, or general avid reader. I absolutely loved reading this memoir because it gave in depth information on so many facets of life important to Spike Lee: family, basketball, cinema. A definite must read, if only for the reason to see why Spike Lee is so emphatic about his Knicks.

Even though I'm not a New York Knicks fan, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Spike Lee, for all the movies he made, I enjoyed his foray into the world of being an author. This book mixes his life from the time he was a child to the time he was an adult with memories of his beloved Knicks, past and present. It was cool to hear about Monroe,Barnett,DeBusschere,Reed,Frazier,Russell (Cazzie, not Bill, but he mentions Bill too I think) and others as well. He also talks about stars of previous eras and comparing them to ones in more current eras. It's really two books in one, combining his life (an autobiography) with his love of the Knicks. We get to learn about both subjects.

I kept thinking something new and original would happen, but it didn't. The characters are very stereotpyical; the courage of moving into a white neighborhood (that an aspect of the book deals with) is no different than what one would expect from any work of fiction about Black America. One character relationship I did find interesting was Beneatha and Lena (Mama). They have several interesting interaction/ conflicts over religion and Beneatha's looking for her African identity. Perhaps novel in its time, this work is outdated.

good play because it influance many black people to stand up for their rights.

Asa y triente wete y bilifico!

Asia magnifico bujione la trakento

I picked this book up on a bargain rack and it is definitely a good read for conscious hip hop fans and Public Enemy fans

Fight The Power, by Chuck D examined everything in the current world today from the education system right down to where he thinks our culture is headed and why. Chuck D breaks everything down in the world and examines it to the fullest. At first glance it may seem like he is a grumpy, washed up rapper but look closer and you will find so much more meaning in the words than you can possibly imagine. Like in the following quote, "Whatever you do, don't go to war for your country." Chuck D is very opinonated and set in his ways. He goes into a full chapter about why you shouldn't be in the army because it changes you forever and how you will never be the same. Therefore, he also shows how the army tricks you by coming to your school and showing all this glitz and glamor to you. People shooting big guns, driving tanks, waving the american flag which essentially is not what the army is like at all. It's very gratifying that a successful rapper has finally released a book like this. It's a great break from the mundane evening news and daily paper. And in the following quote, "There's only a few serious black roles on TV. We have to put pressure on the networks and station groups where pressure hurts." Chuck D make his book universal by showing both sides of the issue and he shows the reader what can be done to help rectify the current problems he addresses in his book Fight The Power. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes any kind of hip-hop or anyone who wants a break from their day to day life and have a great read and whats wrong with our culture and what we can do to help it.

"RAP, RACE and REALITY by Chuck D (with Yusuf Jah) is a blueprint for empowerment! Chuck, master orator and ever the visionary, offers keen observations to help this generation recognize and understand the interaction of prophets, players and pawns in our society. He offers insights into a range of diverse factors which contribute to the current state of Blackness in the world and outlines an action plan to help us combat these forces.

Chuck ties it all together in a cohesive fashion which makes knowing what we need to do plain and simple. I couldn't put it down....AND I was literally taking notes!

In other words, he shows where the power is in our society, who's got it, why we need to fight it, how to fight it and how to get it for ourselves!" True Genius.

--Walt Goodridge, President
Hip Hop Entrepreneur Association
(Walt is also author of Rap: This Game of Exposure andThis Game of Artist Management, two success tools for the Hip Hop Entrepreneur)