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Book Review of Ice: A Memoir of Gangster Life and Redemption-from South Central to Hollywood

Ice: A Memoir of Gangster Life and Redemption-from South Central to Hollywood
reviewed on + 44 more book reviews


My first introduction to Ice-T was in the early 90s with the movie New Jack City. I thought the movie was good, but I noticed Ice-T as Scotty Appleton was the standout role to me. I recognized Ice-T as a rapper, but I was shocked with the unbelievably authentic feeling performance he gave on the big screen. Since then, I was a big fan of Ice-T the actor and gained respect for Ice-T the musician. Given that, I was very interested in hearing the story of his life.

Ice: A Memoir of Gangster Life and Redemption - from South Central to Hollywood is the life story of Tracy Marrow, also known as Ice-T. Despite being known for being a big player in the West Coast rap scene, Ice-T actually was born in and spent over half of his childhood in New Jersey. After the death of his parents by the time he was in 6th grade, he moved to the South Central region of Los Angeles. While the book goes over his early life, it really picks up at the point when he moves to LA.

The book spends a majority of its content describing Ice-Ts life and transition from a petty criminal to a powerhouse in the music industry to a major player in film and TV. The book is a brilliantly told story of using your brains and will to overcome obstacles and conquer your dreams. Toward the end of the book, the story transitions from the life of Ice-T to the philosophy of Ice-T. The language of the book is quite simple and often offensive, but personally I thought that added to the book rather than detracted from it. It made the book feel more like a conversation or listening to someone telling a story rather than reading a story.

If you can relate to someone who came from virtually nothing and had no one in life, this book could be quite an inspirational piece. The philosophy of Ice-T and how he has approached life is simple yet most people do not pick up on it. The story of Ice-T is an excellent one and would be of interest of anyone who is a fan of Ice-T the criminal, the actor, or the musician. If you fall into these categories, this is an excellent read that you wont want to put down.