with Adam Bradley
Review by Tavares S. Carney
“Letters to Grow On”
If one were to make a summation of this book in Common’s hip-hop lyrics, I would definitely say One Day It’ll All Make Sense is the author’s “Retrospect for Life” as he reflects upon his life from where he is today. The reason I emphasize present day is the fact I gather this entertainer has aspirations he has yet to even pursue.
In this semi-autobiographical memoir injected with letters from his mother’s perspective, Common shares his life experiences as he garners fame as a hip-hop artist, and later actor. He shares his wins, his losses, his struggles and his triumphs. In between he talks about growing up as a young black male in Chicago, his friends, his loves and his family. In retrospect, he takes nothing and no one for granted.
What I like in particular about this book are the letters the author writes to individuals who have in some way or another helped shape the man he is today. Whether or not these individuals remain constants in his life, the author openly shares lessons learned from each of them. These people may or may not have known prior to this release that a part of the author’s growth can be attributed to each of them. I also enjoyed reading his mother’s take on people, places and things, some of which only a mother of a teenage boy can relate. The clear message throughout One Day It’ll All Make Sense is that our life experiences shape us as human beings.
Because I am a fan of the hip-hop artist, actor, and now author, this book intrigued me because Common is widely known and accepted as a “conscious rapper,” who by my own definition speaks of relevant issues and not always the stereotypical.
The title is aptly fitting, sending a message that no matter what we go through “one day it’ll all make sense.”
For more on the author, please visit ThinkCommon.com.
Review by Tavares S. Carney
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*No compensation or gift-in-kind received for this review.
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