Customer Reviews

Streets of New York, Vol. 1

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

S.O.N.Y volume 1 is the first of a trilogy written by best selling authors Anthony Whyte (Ghetto Girls), Mark Anthony (Paper Chasers, Dogism) and Erick S. Gray (Booty Call). The story focuses on life long friends Promise, Squeeze, Show and Pooh. Born and raised in the streets of Brooklyn, N.Y, these cats are focused on getting what they want from whoever is caught slipping, afterall that's what stick-up kids do!

The stakes have been raised for Promise who obtains full custody of his three year old daughter after her mother is brutally murdered. He must decide if he is going to continue in a lifestyle that threatens his daughters well being or pull out of his crew and risk losing his friends.

This book was broken down into three parts, each author being responsible for for one. 'Wild Side' written in third person gives us insight on Promise and his relationship with his daughter. 'Ride or Die Chick' written in first person female voice, proves to be the most exciting and well-written section.(Kudos to Mark Anthony....who said men can't write from a females perspective?) The final entry, 'One Block To Go', was written in first person male voice and was a tad confusing with the flashbacks of the speaking charactar.

This book held good rhythm up to 'One More Block' which I feel threw off the balance of the story. Without giving too much away, I feel "that charactar" should not have been "talking" at that point in the story. Also, many of the facts that the reader discovers are irrelevent at that time.

Overall, the story was entertaining. Despite minor typos (more so toward the end of the book), it held my attention. It will be interesting to see what direction the authors are going to take with Streets of New York Volume 2.

....anthony whyte (author of "ghetto girls", which i liked) should have not been last; the readers already know that he is dead - his story is out of sequence between the 3 authors....also his story content was not well organized either (he jumps from one scene back to another time and then back again - i felt like i was reading in a zig -zag)....he did get me to laugh out loud a few times.....another plus side of mr. whyte's narration is to find out that who really killed the character is not who i thought it was.(i really liked that),..but that's the only light he shed on the story content.

....erick gray (author of "booty call"), wrote part 1 of this volume, didn't have enough power in his words when narrating his story....i kept reading his story only because it was at the beginning of the book,..and i wanted to know how the story was going to play itself out....i felt no other incentives to turn the page when i read his narration.

...there were some typos in the book.


....in my opinion,there was only one story worth reading in the entire book.... that was the narration written by mark anthony (author of "paper chasers" and "dogism" --excellent books!)...this is the 1st i have read of mr. anthony writing in 1st person as the female voice ( another creative side of this author)...i give this book a 4 on the strength of the writing of mr.anthony....

...i applaud the efforts of these 3 men in their collaboration of their premiere presentation of a literary hip-hop saga.....
...i recognize & appreciate their 1st attempt and i would definitely buy and recommend to fellow readers to purchase this book as well as the next volumes to follow.

I ENJOYED THIS BOOK EVEN THOUGH IT WENT BACKWARD TOWARDS THE END. I AM INTRIGUED WITH WHATS GOING TO HAPPEN IN PART 2, SO I'LL DEFINITELY BE WAITING FOR IT!!!! I HAVE HAD THE PLEASURE OF READING SOME IF NOT ALL OF THESE AUTHORS WORK. I WILL REFER OTHERS TO THIS BOOK, I SEE THAT ANOTHER BOOK (SAME TITLE ) ENCLUDING SHANNON HOLMES WILL BE COMING OUT SOON, I'LL EVEN CHECK THAT OUT,TO SEE WHAT CHANGES IF ANY WERE MADE.

I bought this at the request of one of my students. After reading this trash, I threw it away; it is not suitable for anyone, much less a 15 year old.

When the mother of Promise's daughter is brutally murdered, he steps up to the plate and begins raising his daughter on his own. Life as a single dad isn't easy, but he adjusts to the routine of caring for his daughter and creating a family for them. His only problem is the way he makes money. He and his partners Squeeze, Show and Pooh have been friends since childhood and now they are in business together. Rather than hustling drugs or women, their crew hustles the hustlers - robbing them of their illegal goods and money. The life of crime brings easy money, but it also involves risks and with a 3-year-old depending on him, Promise must reevaluate how he's living. In STREETS OF NEW YORK, the three authors introduce us to a group of memorable characters, all of whom, like Promise, are at a crossroads.

Each of the authors told parts of the story through the eyes of different characters. "Wild Side" by Erick Gray is told from Promise's point of view. In it, readers are privy to his inner thoughts and issues regarding his lifestyle. In "Ride or Die Chick" Mark Anthony continues Promise's story, but tells it from the point of view of his girlfriend. The transition between these two stories was well executed; you could hardly tell there were two different writers. Finally, Anthony Whyte's contribution, "One Block to Go" gives readers a deeper look at Pooh. Whyte shifts between past and present in a series of flashbacks and, while the transition was a bit rocky at times, he did a good job outlining the how and why behind the man that Pooh became. As the book ends, you can't help but wonder what will happen in the sequel.

Overall, I enjoyed STREETS OF NEW YORK. While it focused on criminal lifestyles, it still did a good job depicting the downside to easy money. The book was never preachy and the characters were interesting and multi-dimensional. Through their struggles, it is apparent that even though the money was good, they all had to pay a price to live as they did. The book had a few editing issues, but not to the point that they were a constant distraction. I was particularly impressed by how well each of the author's contributions fit so well together; it was like reading a novel. This is a gritty, hard-hitting tale that shows the true consequences of life on the streets.

Reviewed by Stacey Seay
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers

This book was off da hook. I loved the story, the plot and the outcome. It held my interest from begining to end. Mr. Gray started it off correct,with Promise and his daugher. Mr. Anthony took it there with Audrey and V.A, and Mr. White finished it off with you wanting to read Volume II. Ohmigod, I read this book in six hours, because I couldn't put it down. It was so real to me, and it was different. I loved Promise in the begining, but hated him when he had Audrey getting corrupt in the game. And Pooh, he was gangsta. I'm dying to read Volume II. I gotta see what went down with Promise, Squeeze, Show, and Pooh. Because Squeeze and them killed the wrong man in the end, and i know things will heat up in Volume II. MY hats off to these three gifted authors. They colobrated and put together one hell of a book. The story is real, as are the characters. I'm a big fan.