amzn.to/3hGXPzr This is a wild book, and I wholeheartedly recommend it.
But first I read "Malibu Rising," Taylor Jenkins Reid's follow-up to "Daisy Jones & the Six," her surprise hit novel based on Fleetwood Mac. "Malibu Rising" is number one in Los Angeles, top ten nationally, and I don't recommend you read it, it's a glorified beach read. It starts off with a description of the Malibu/Southern California/weather landscape and you might be tempted to put it down but then it goes into the saga of a Malibu family that's got some interesting thoughts on fame and relationships but if you're looking for something meatier, something more insightful, "Black Buck" is definitely the one.
Not that I caught it when it was released six months ago in the endless procession of titles. Or maybe the description didn't float my boat. But it was highly recommended by a reader so I downloaded it from the library and when I had nothing else new to read I started it and...
They don't write books like this. That are outside the canon, that break the style rulebook, which you learn at Iowa's graduate writing program, or the plethora of its imitators...it's all about descriptors, metaphors, the writing as opposed to the plot, all immediacy is sacrificed, all originality squandered in pursuit of something seamless, too often essentially plotless, to appeal to a small coterie of pooh-bahs. It's a competition most of us are not interested in. What we're looking for is something different, something that captures the zeitgeist, that titillates us and keeps us reading, that evidences attitude and personality, that's innovative, that we want to tell everybody about, and that's Mateo Askaripour's "Black Buck.
I know, I know, you're turned off by the author's name. You can admit it. You don't want another highly touted highfalutin' book about the African experience, coming to America and adjusting or not. But that's not what "Black Buck" is about. You can't judge a book by its cover, nor the name of its author, nor its title, it's what's between the covers that counts.
And Mateo Askaripour did not go to the Iowa school, he didn't follow anybody else's precepts, he pursued his personal direction, and therefore he ended up with something unique, that every American should read, even though they won't.
It starts off as a sales manual. Yes, how do you sell? If you've got that skill you can always make bank, you can survive, you might even triumph.
Buck was the valedictorian at Bronx Science but he's managing a Starbucks, he didn't go to college. He still lives in Bed-Stuy with his mother, quite near...Marcy Playground. I never knew it was a real place! He's got his friends from the hood and he's going nowhere fast but he dreams he will triumph but he just can't take the risk, that's the American way, you coulda been a contender, only first you've got to get into the ring.
So, he's recruited by Rhett to work at his startup, because...well, I'll let you read and find out, but it all comes down to the art of sales.
And that's what it's all about at Sumwun, the startup, selling. They teach you the skills in a boot camp that's more akin to a frat hazing and...
You won't be sure exactly what is going on. Where the book is going. You're thrilled by the blocked out insights peppering the book, the sales tips, but what is "Black Buck" really about?
Hang in there, the book gets exciting about 30% in and about halfway through you can't put it down. It makes huge, relevant points with a sense of humor, and plot, that will have you thinking about race in America today.
But "Black Buck" doesn't beat you over the head, it's not a sermon, just an illustration and...
If you get ahead will your old friends resent your ascendance?
Probably. Or else you'll find you'd rather hang with your new buddies, who understand what you're talking about, who are more stimulating.
Can your relationship with your parents hold you back, the obligation to look out for them, be there for them?
That's true too.
Can you own your identity at work?
Well, usually not.
Are people out to get you at work?
Unfortunately, yes.
Is it better to keep your head down and go along with the team or go your own way, speak your own truth?
The game is rigged folks. And the people in power want to keep it that way. So what is going to happen in America now?
Damned if I know. But what I do know is Mateo Askaripour delineates the issues better than any billionaire coming down off their throne to try and inspire us. "Black Buck" is the best business book you can read. But is it a self-help book or a novel? Actually, it's both. But is the self-help tongue-in-cheek?
Well, Askaripour did start off in sales, he did work in the startup world, he didn't have to research to know the landscape, he lived it.
You'll be captivated, you'll laugh, you'll marvel at the truth and you'll tell people about "Black Buck." Word of mouth is everything these days, top down marketing doesn't work. If you can infect people with your art they can't wait to tell others about it. Like me, with "Black Buck."
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