Other noteworthy titles.

50 Cent: No Holds Barred by Jake Brown Colossus Books/Amber Communications Group, Inc., June 2005 $16.95, ISBN 0-976-77352-X Music producer Jake Brown offers another take on 50 Cent's struggles in the streets and his triumphs in the recording studio. The book is complete with photos and reproductions of court documents.

Queens Reigns Supreme: Fat Cat 50 Cent, and the Rise of the Hip-Hop Hustler by Ethan Brown Anchor, November 2005 $16.95, ISBN 0-976-77352-X A revealing book that takes a look at the truth behind today's "gangsta" culture. The writer chronicles the rise of drug use in the 1970s and '80s and the importance of "street" credibility.

Biggie: Voletta Wallace Remembers Her Son, Christopher Wallace A.K.A. Notorious B.I.G. by Voletta Wallace and Tremell McKenzie, Atria Books, October 2005 $29.95, ISBN 0-743-47020-6 Without a doubt, Notorious B.I.G. was the "illest" rapper to emerge in the rap genre. He was a composer whose lyrics defined the hip-hop generation. In Biggie, Voletta Wallace, mother of the gunneddown artist, chronicles and celebrates the life of her talented son, as she poignantly recalls his early interest in music, her determination to protect him from the mean streets, his reaching rap superstar status and the pain she endured after his death.

Thru My Eyes: Thoughts on Tupac Amaru Shakur in Pictures and Words by Gobi, with Foreword by Afeni Shakur, Atria Books, October 2005 $20, ISBN 0-743-45700-5 Photographer Gobi, who was also Tupac's former music video director and friend, offers a glimpse of the young poet and music icon in this collection of 50 photographs, many seldom seen before. He dedicates the book to Tupac's fans.