Pimp: The Story of My Life by ICEBERG SLIM

Iceberg Slim was a pimp in Chicago between 1938 and 1960. A lifetime in the pimp business. He lived a life (partly) in luxury, with money, women and drugs, but he also constantly had one foot behind bars, on violent streets and among people trying to outsmart him.
As the master pimp Sweet Jones said: "A pimp is really a whore who's turned the rules in the hooker business."

Slim was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, then by the name Robert Beck. His mother was a washer and used to work all days long. She had come from Chicago, with Slim yet unborn, running from a violent and responsibleless man.

The book is an adornless tale of Iceberg's life. He doesn't give himslef away for somethign he's not. He doesn't describe himself as a very sympathic person, and probably he weren't. But he gets away with it, because that was his life. Interesting read from a book; probably less interesting living.

The gangster rapper Ice-T was inspired by Iceberg's writing, and has written the introduction for severeal of Slim's novels. He calls Slim's writing the beginning of what's usually is referred to as gangster rap. He himself calls it reality rap, as well as Iceberg Slim was writing of his reality. Naturally it doesn't apply to everyone's reality. As he writes in the introduction to "Doom Fox".