Upcycled Self: A Memoir on the Art of Becoming Who We Are

Trotter, Tariq From one of our generation’s most powerful artists and incisive storytellers comes a brilliantly crafted work about the art –and war – of becoming who we are.upcycle verbup·cy·cle ˈəp-ˌsī-kəl: to recycle (something) in such a way that the resulting product is of a higher value than the original item : to create an object of greater value from (a discarded object of lesser value)Today Tariq Trotter—better known as Black Thought—is the platinum-selling, Grammy-winning co-founder of The Roots, and one of the most exhilaratingly skillful and profound rappers the culture has ever produced. But his story begins with a tragedy: as a child, Trotter burned down his family’s home. The years that followed are the story of a life snatched from the flames, forged in fire.In The Upcycled Self, Trotter doesn’t just narrate a riveting and moving portrait of the artist as a young man, but gives readers a courageous model of what it means to live an examined life. In vivid vignettes, he t