The Michael Eric Dyson Reader shines a ray of intellectual sunlight on the heretofore-barren landscape of insightful examination of important issues that affect everyone from all walks of life. This is a book of thoughtful, yet shoot-from-the-hip honesty covering all the hot button topics from affirmative action to the unflinching examination of beloved African American icons Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dyson bravely examines the frightening and fatal Tupac Shakur/Biggie Smalls rivalry and the effect of newspaper editors' and television news anchors' attempts to split asunder the hip-hop culture because it gives African Americans too much power, which scares the predominately-white media. Dyson also examines the consequences of O.J. Simpson, Kobe Bryant, and Michael Jackson’s behavior on the national perception of their race.

Dyson’s mix of racial and political conditions of today’s America has earned him the respectful attention of those who want the unvarnished truth presented in insightful yet easy to understand prose. The Michael Eric Dyson Reader is a compilation of the most thought-provoking of his impressive work. Reading this book compels you to reexamine your attitudes on the issues he dissects with fearless aplomb.

Dyson is an accomplished academic who, rather than being removed from the average person, tackles subjects in an easily accessible manner to anyone with the courage to read his opinions. That is a rare quality; most intellectuals are so busy trying to impress everyone with their wit, wisdom and vocabulary that usually only other intellectuals can grasp what they mean.

This is a universal book that barrels across racial lines to encourage thought and discussion on a national scale. That is another indication of the brilliance of Michael Eric Dyson; he could easily have fallen into the trap of exclusionary dialogue with the intent to appeal only to those of his race. Instead, he accomplishes the unimaginable, causing readers of all races - not just Caucasian and African American - to reexamine ingrained beliefs that often spring from cultural myths with no basis in fact.

Dyson has created an important - even classic - work that could conceivably change the world one reader at a time. Give The Michael Eric Dyson Reader the honor it deserves: read it with the same passion with which Dyson wrote it, then recommend it to your friends. Enlightenment may come to all who are brave enough to tackle a masterpiece that will bring people together if only they will allow it to.