Street Poison: The Biography of Iceberg Slim

Gifford (English, Univ. of Nevada, Reno; Pimping Fictions) has written a remarkably researched, fascinating life story of popular writer Robert "Iceberg Slim" Beck (1918–92). Author of the memoir Pimp and several novels, Beck was the original gangster figure, giving birth to such other urban fiction icons as Donald Goines, Odie Hawkins, and Clarence Cooper Jr., as well as rappers including Ice-T and Ice Cube. Gifford conducted interviews with many of Beck's associates and family members and utilized his access to the writer's archival material to provide an in-depth, highly engaging study. He not only offers insights on Beck's writings but also sheds light on the exploitative relationship between Beck and his publisher, Holloway House. Beck's personal failings and his tortured experiences with women (particularly his mother), drugs, and the penal system are fully explored. The author's material is not high literature, and his life can be difficult to read, but Gifford makes a strong case for the enormous popular appeal and the continuing widespread influence of Iceberg Slim.