From Pieces to Weight by 50 Cent and Kris Ex (2005, Hardcover)

Synopsis
Curtis James Jackson III was the child of a mother who supported her extended family (which seems to have consisted of alcoholic uncles and cocaine-addicted cousins) by dealing drugs, and who was murdered when he was eight. He was 11 years old when crack cocaine became the street drug of preference and he began his own drug-vending career. In FROM PIECES TO WEIGHT, the future 50 Cent recounts his rapid rise in the street drug business, which was only interrupted by his realization that if he continued in it much longer, he'd be dead. Rap music, while not a vocation, provided a less lethal alternative. With an authentically thuggish background (as he states, there's no such thing as a gangsta rapper--you're either one or the other), Jackson survived the verbal barbs of jealous peers, as well as nine bullets from one of his more homicidally inclined ex-colleagues, to become one of the best-known rap artists in the world. Concentrating on the hardscrabble years before his arrival at superstar status, his autobiography is a stark depiction of thug life, often violent and always gripping in its candid revelations of the harsh realities of street survival.

Key Details
Author:	50 Cent, Kris Ex
Language:	English
Publisher:	Mtv Books
Format:	Hardcover
ISBN-10:	0743486447
ISBN-13:	9780743486446

Size
Length:	223 pages
Thickness:	1 in
Weight:	15.2 oz

Publisher's Note
GET RICH OR DIE TRYIN'That's what this book is about--the good times and the bad times. I wrote this book to explain the world I come from. To a lot of people, I may be too young to reflect on life. And they may be right. But I'd be wasting my blessings if I didn't use the attention I'm getting to shed light on the experiences that have caused me to say the things I say and make the kind of music I make. I want to explain my environment to those who don't come any closer to it than the records they buy or the images they see on television. People want the truth. Even if they can't handle it, they want it. I let you know that I survived nine bullets not to sell records, but because it's the truth. Every time I sit down for an interview, I'm asked, "Well, 50, how did it feel to get shot nine times?" But those stories don't hold the weight, the pain, or the hope of my experience. It just can't. This is my mindset and these are the things that go on. This is why I say the rhymes that I say. This is what happened when I was trying to get rich before I died in Southside Queens.So begins From Pieces to Weight: Once Upon a Time in Southside Queens, a violent and introspective memoir that reveals not only 50's story but the story of a generation of youth faced with hard choices and very little options. A tale of sacrifice, transformation and redemption, but it is also one of hope, determination and the power of self. Told in 50's own unique voice, the narrative drips with the raw insight, street wisdom, and his struggle to survive at all costs...and behold the riches of the American Dream.50 Cent has sold over 20 million records worldwide. His record-breaking debut album Get Rich or Die Tryin' has sold over 12 million units worldwide, with the largest debut in SoundScan history. While his sophomore effort, The Massacre, sold over 1.14 million copies in its fi rst four days of release, he has since become the fi rst artist to have four songs in the top ten of Billboard's Hot 100 since The Beatles in 1964.His business empire includes: a record label (G-Unit Records, a division of Interscope Records), apparel/footwear ventures (G-Unit Clothing and footwear, joint ventures through the Ecko Clothing Company and Reebok, respectively), vitamin water (Formula 50, through Glacéau's Vitamin Water), watch line (G-Unit Watches, through Jacob & Co), and a video game (50 Cent: Bulletproof, through Vivendi Games). His future plans are to dominate the film and television worlds through two new G-Unit ventures in film and television...and his most prized project: the nonprofit organization The G-Unity Foundation, which aims to better the life of urban youth.

An explosive memoir by one of today's hottest rap artists recounts the story of his life, his decision to abandon his dangerous life of crime to pursue a hip-hop career, his confontation with a rival drug lord that nearly ended his life, and his rise to success in the music business, and includes a collection of previously unpublished poetry and lyrics.

Industry Reviews
"Opinionated, unrepentant and unabashedly self-promoting, 50 Cent's memoir celebrates the rapper's particular brand of the American Dream."
Publishers Weekly (08/08/2005)