by Tariq Black Thought Trotter
First published 2023
As a child, Tariq Trotter sets fire to his family's house. The flames consume everything, leaving behind ash and the weight of what he has done. The years that follow become a journey of reconstruction, as Trotter learns to forge something valuable from the wreckage of his early life. Four relationships shape his path forward: the community that surrounds him, the friends who stand by him, the art that calls to him, and the family he both loves and has wounded. Each connection brings its own mix of discovery and trauma, joy and loss. Trotter must navigate the complex terrain of forgiveness, both seeking it and learning to give it. The boy who destroyed his home grows into the artist known as Black Thought, co-founder of The Roots and a Grammy-winning rapper. But success doesn't erase the questions that burn within him. How does he make sense of his young life? How does he honor his first dreams while moving beyond his early mistakes? The answers lie in learning to transform pain into something beautiful, to upcycle the broken pieces of his past into art that matters.
Genres: art, african-american, coming-of-age, biography-memoir, 21st-century, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, redemption
Period: 21st-Century
208 pages · Hardcover · One World
Content warnings: child-abuse