Books published by publisher Urban Audiobooks and Blackstone Audio

A blueprint. A bible. What Sun Tzu's Art of War was to ancient China, Pimp is to the streets. As real as you can get without jumping in, this is the story of Iceberg Slim's life as he saw, felt, tasted, and smelled it. It is a trip through hell by the one man who lived to tell the tale--the dangers of jail, addiction, and death that are still all too familiar for today's black community. By telling the story of one man's struggles and triumphs in an underground world, Pimp shows us the game doesn't change; it just has a different swagger. Only Slim could tell this story and make the reader feel it. If you thought Hustle & Flow was the true pimp story, this book is where it all began. This is the heyday of the pimp, the hard-won pride and glory, small though it may be; the beginnings of pimp before it was dragged in front of the camera, before pimp juice and pimp style. Though it is a tale of his times, it will remain current and true for as long as there is a race bias, as long as there is a street life, as long as there is exploitation.

The hottest young voices in urban literature and New York Times bestselling authors of 'The Cartel' series, Ashley & JaQuavis now bring you ''Murderville'' -- the first book in a highly anticipated new trilogy. Two children from Sierra Leone, Liberty and A'shai, are brought together by chance, only to be forced apart by the most inevitable and tragic fate. Ashley & JaQuavis bring us this classic love story set against modern life's most horrifying realities. Liberty is dying of a fatal heart condition, though she desperately wants to survive until her twenty-fifth birthday, when her sister has promised to visit her. A'shai blames himself for not protecting Liberty, but all Liberty asks is for A'shai to tell her a story, to help her remember what brought them to this point. He knows that this is the last story he will ever tell--and the last she will ever hear. As Liberty lies dying, A'shai walks her through their past, reliving their ill-fated journeys through the streets. Their story will take them from an arranged marriage, through Mexico's drug cartel, child brothels, and hustling in Detroit, to escaping the high-powered heads of LA ' underworld. But ultimately, this is a story of love and redemption that will leave you breathless from the unpredictable and mind-blowing ending.

[Read by Ralph Cosham] A timeless classic on ''Hell's latest novelties and Heaven's unanswerable answer.'' A masterpiece of satire, this classic work has entertained and enlightened readers the world over with its sly and ironic portrayal of human life and foibles from the vantage point of Screwtape, a highly placed assistant to ''Our Father Below.'' At once wildly comic, deadly serious, and strikingly original, C. S. Lewis gives us the correspondence of the worldly-wise old devil to his nephew Wormwood, a novice demon in charge of securing the damnation of an ordinary young man. The Screwtape Letters is the most engaging account of temptation -- and triumph over it -- ever written, offering insights on good vs. evil, repentance, grace, and more.

[*Read by the author - Travis Barker] Travis Barker's soul-baring memoir chronicles the highlights and lowlights of the renowned drummer's art and his life. After breaking out as the acclaimed drummer of the multiplatinum punk band Blink-182, everything changed for Travis Barker. But the dark side of rock stardom took its toll: his marriage, chronicled for an MTV reality show, fell apart. Constant touring concealed a serious drug addiction. A reckoning did not truly come until he was forced to face mortality: his life nearly ended in a horrifying plane crash. His pulsating memoir is as energetic as his acclaimed beats. It brings to a close the first chapters of a well-lived life, inspiring listeners to follow the rhythms of their own hearts.

[Translated by Constance Garnett] [Read by Frederick Davidson] This passionate novel of ethics and morality, religion and philosophy, was Dostoevsky's final and best work. --After spending four years in a Siberian penal settlement, during which time he underwent a religious conversion, Dostoevsky developed a keen ability for deep character analysis. In The Brothers Karamazov, he explores human nature at its most loathsome and cruel but never flinches at what he finds. -- The Brothers Karamazov tells the stirring tale of four brothers: the pleasure-seeking, impatient Dmitri; the brilliant and morose Ivan; the gentle, loving, and honest Alyosha; and the illegitimate Smerdyakov: shy, silent, and cruel. The four unite in the murder of one of literature's most despicable characters - their father. While on the surface a story about patricide, this novel is, on a deeper level, a spiritual tale of the struggle between faith, doubt, reason, and free will.

"America needed its great war of brothers," wrote Bruce Catton, "to weld in a terrible fire what had been and what might be. The story of the war needs retelling because it helped to change the future of the human race." The Civil War is America's great Iliad, and few would dispute that its outcome is evident in most social and political issues today. For a person seeking a single volume to serve as a captivating introduction and dependable guide through all the maze of battles and issues of the Civil War, this is a book without parallel. Catton understood the Civil War, its participants and battles, and he unfolds it with skill and simplicity. Of all historians past and present, Bruce Catton ranks among the best. Said Henry Steele Comanger in the New York Times, this work "is everything we have come to expect from the practiced hand of Bruce Catton: scholarly, judicious, clear, and unfailingly interesting. It would be difficult to find a better introduction to the Civil War than this book."

[*Read by the author - Travis Barker] Travis Barker's soul-baring memoir chronicles the highlights and lowlights of the renowned drummer's art and his life. After breaking out as the acclaimed drummer of the multiplatinum punk band Blink-182, everything changed for Travis Barker. But the dark side of rock stardom took its toll: his marriage, chronicled for an MTV reality show, fell apart. Constant touring concealed a serious drug addiction. A reckoning did not truly come until he was forced to face mortality: his life nearly ended in a horrifying plane crash. His pulsating memoir is as energetic as his acclaimed beats. It brings to a close the first chapters of a well-lived life, inspiring listeners to follow the rhythms of their own hearts.

[Read by Cary Hite]From New York Times bestselling author Wahida Clark comes the highly anticipated next installment in the Queen's notorious Payback series. Fans will rush to this latest installment while new readers will be eager to discover Clark's unmatched melodrama.Someone wants every member of the consortium dead, and they'll stop at nothing to make that happen. Meanwhile, Shan has transferred back into Redbone and has taken it to a whole new level. Nick suspects Shan is still in love with Briggen, even though she is with him. Janay has a new lease on life, but her ties to Crystal are always a challenge. Everyone is gunning for Dark, and with The List in the hands of Cisco's wife, Joy, Dark's chances of taking over Detroit are threatened more than ever before. Everyone is fueled by fire and seeking the ultimate revenge.

[Read by Cary Hite] A complex and bloody tale from one of this generation's most talented and gritty writers. #1 Essence bestselling author K'wan returns with the explosive fourth installment in the Animal saga.Animal, the gentle and kind-hearted family man, is still infamous for turning at any moment into a cold-blooded killer. Animal is the product of ruthless abuse and the unforgiving streets -- he is the product of the world we all live in.Is there anything that could push you to the breaking point of murder? Are you absolutely sure there isn't? After all, there's an Animal in all of us.

[Read by Cary Hite] A complex and bloody tale from one of this generation's most talented and gritty writers. #1 Essence bestselling author K'wan returns with the explosive fourth installment in the Animal saga.Animal, the gentle and kind-hearted family man, is still infamous for turning at any moment into a cold-blooded killer. Animal is the product of ruthless abuse and the unforgiving streets -- he is the product of the world we all live in.Is there anything that could push you to the breaking point of murder? Are you absolutely sure there isn't? After all, there's an Animal in all of us.