As a collection of essays this book varies in quality, readibility, and insight. There were only one or maybe two essays that felt like utter academese filler, using a lot of words to say almost nothing, but there were also some good essays, particularly the forward, that put Eminem in his place, so to speak, explaining some of the context of his fame and fortunes, addressing some of the obvious criticisms of both his work and his success relative to many other talented artists in rap, and in some cases doing a real deep dive in the mechanics of his poetry, rhythm, and approach. Because the project didn't obtain any rights to print the lyrics themselves it helps a lot to either be familiar with Eminem already or willing to look up the songs that are referenced and give them a good listen as you read along. I haven't listed to Eminem in a very long time, and one of those non-black kids back when he was taking off my familiarity with rap generally is pretty low, so it was an education just to listen not just to the songs of Eminem's that get attention but that of the other artists that are brought up in contrast with him.

And of course the subtitle of the book is a strong hint that the issues these essays cover aren't limited to Eminem as an artist or even rap as a genre. A lot of attention is paid to relationship between American society, race, and creative work. There is also a relatively broad range of approaches to the issue. While some essays are a little more absolutist than others than the role race had to play in Eminem's ridiculous success, in general a lot of nuance is brought to bear, that gives respect to something that is a lot more complex than "He's just that good" or "He's just that white."While there are a couple of duds, and a few essays that are very deep in the academy, making them a bit difficult to parse for the layman, this was overall an interesting and thought-provoking collection of essays. ( )

I'm a huge rap fan, and also a lit geek. I really dug the idea of a collection of essays from different points of view: academic, music, social, etc. Some of the essays really reached into the content and meaning of his lyrics and social history. Some of the essays felt like they just skimmed the surface. Overall though, I really appreciated the chance to read a deeper dive into his work. ( )

I won this as a LibraryThing Early Reviewer. Although I myself am not an Eminem fan, I thought it would be a great book to share with some of my students who are. The essays, though, are too complex for most high-school students.

This book is a collection of essays from experts about Eminem that not only deal with his popularity and his fast-rising success but also delve into the technical aspects of his craft. The essays intelligently explore the controversies, appeal, and role of Eminem in music and hip-hop from a variety of perspectives and frameworks. It is extremely interesting, and it is organized in such a way that the reader does not need to read the entire book in one sitting but can only focus on those chapters that are of interest. Personally, I found the chapters titled "Neither Black nor White: Poor White Trash" and "Somewhere in Between: Eminem's Ambiguities" to be extremely interesting. True fans of Eminem will want to read this book, of course, but those with interest of race in society will also find this an informative and fascinating read. No background information or context of hip-hop is necessary, although the essays will deepen current knowledge of those fans of hip-hop aesthetics. ( )

My son is a huge fan of Eminem and has read a lot of material about the artist. The information here is eclectic. The only thing I would say is a downfall of this book, is the lack of photos. The addition of photos would tell some of his story a little better. ( )