The Way I Am (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Sacha Jenkins (Author)
Key Phrases: Slim Shady, The Marshall Mathers, Role Model (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The biggest rapper in history."-Rolling Stone

"The best rapper alive."-Vibe magazine

"Part autobiography, part photo gallery, part ephemera collection, it's a handsome roundup for an artist who has been notoriously reluctant to discuss his personal life anyplace but in his music."-New York Times --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description

For the first time, one of music’s most popular—and headline-making—rap artists shares his private reflections, drawings, handwritten lyrics, and never-before-seen photographs.

Fiercely intelligent, relentlessly provocative, and prodigiously gifted, Eminem is known as much for his enigmatic persona as for being the fastest-selling rap artist and the first rapper to ever win an Oscar. Now, in The Way I Am, he shares his private thoughts on everything from his inner struggles, to the trials of being famous, to his love for his daughter, Hailie, creating a book that is every bit as raw and uncensored as the man himself.

Illustrated with never-before-seen photographs of Eminem’s home and life along with original drawings, The Way I Am is filled with reflections on his greatest hits, previously unpublished lyric sheets, and other rare memorabilia. Providing his millions of fans with a personal tour of Eminem’s creative process, it is poised to be hailed in much the same way as Tupac’s The Rose that Grew from Concrete, Bob Dylan’s Chronicles, and Journals by Kurt Cobain.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 216 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Adult (October 21, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 052595032X
• ISBN-13: 978-0525950325
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 8.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #41,255 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #16 in	Books > Entertainment > Music > Musical Genres > Rap
  #93 in	Books > Entertainment > Music > History & Criticism

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great read for the fans, October 22, 2008

By	Eduver S. Romero Melendez - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is really great. Since the book is written mostly by him, you will learn A LOT about him, even the most hardcore fans will find somethings new here. He's very open, honest & pretty funny. Also, there's like 20 pages of his lyric sheets with comments on them by him, this was cool for me cause I like seeing how music artist write their stuff (although his handwritting is hard to read). Also there's personal pics (a bunch), drawings (like 4) but mostly this book is like sitting across him and interviewing him.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Explains a lot, well worth the wait, November 1, 2008

By	E. Phillips - See all my reviews

Even though I'm a huge Eminem fan, I learned a lot from this book. He covers a lot of subjects that he hasn't before and explains a lot of recent events too. I think the book is very well-written, easy to follow, and very interesting. I've been waiting for Eminem to write a biography for a very long time and I think the wait was well worth it. I'm not too big on reading but I finished this book in three days. If you're an Eminem fan, buy this now. You won't regret it because you'll learn a lot from it.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Impressed, but missing critical details, May 30, 2009

By	N. Kaufmann (NJ) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I am one of Eminem's "older" fans that he references in his book -- but it wasn't "8 Mile" that did it, it was his performance of "Stan" with Elton Jon. He has always intrigued me -- never smiles, seems kind of awkward in interviews, but yet is an artistic genius who is obviously the "real deal" and hence his long staying power. I thought the book was wonderfully written -- a conversational style that sounded just like him, yet wasn't so full of rap jargon that I didn't get it. I loved hearing about his relationship with Proof, who I hadn't known much about. It was interesting, and a little sad, to hear how fame has affected his ability to go out in public without a "posse". The book humanizes him and shows that he's matured; he even apologizes for that dumb Triumph the Insult Dog incident. And the photos of the scrawled lyrics, some on hotel paper, were fascinating. However, I felt key details were missing: He glosses over how he first got involved with Dr. Dre; there's barely anything about his relationship with Kim, how he met her, why they remarried then almost immediately split up again; there's nothing about his addiction to painkillers or going through rehab. The book just comes to an end rather abruptly. If he would have gone into more detail about these aspects of his life, the book would've been perfect, to me.