Book Review.Charlamagne Tha God. Shook One; Anxiety Playing Tricks on Me.

  Hey y’all, it’s been forever, my bad. Well, this is not the usual travel post. I have been meaning to do book reviews for the longest time, now I get to do one. So, I came across this book when my crush tweeted about it. He was talking about the two books he loved and this was first on the list and the second one was My Voice by Angie Martinez. I figured there is no harm in trying to figure out what kinda books he is into so I added it on my reading list. I cannot really say I am a huge fan of Charlamagne, I know he hosts The Breakfast show, I had no clue he had two books out. I honestly did not think I would enjoy the book. Heck, I have rarely enjoyed let alone finished books by celebrities, apart from Trevor Noah’s Born a Crime (this was a super easy read. Probably coz it was full of humor and it was relatable and definitely coz I like him). I never finished Gabriel Union’s We are going to need more wine, never started Kevin Hart’s I can’t make this up, DJ Khaled’s The Keys et al. I am actually yet to read Becoming by Michele Obama but that’s coz I am yet to buy the paperback copy.

Anyway, I was talking about Charlamagne’s book. I surprised myself by finishing the book in a day and this was majorly coz it was a really easy read. The book is about his battle with anxiety and it tends to be totally relatable. He talks about instances when he got anxiety attacks and how he dealt with that, he traces the issues from as early as his childhood and his need to fit in (we have all been there). He also talks about men and seeking therapy, a conversation we have had with friends over an article we read (https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/features/a27259689/toxic-masculinity-male-friendships-emotional-labor-men-rely-on-women/). Which seems to be a really big problem.

The book has a few hilarious parts but it mostly hits on how anxiety can be paralyzing even to those we think have made it in life. The book has a lot of references to hip-hop music, but that doesn’t mean you won’t get it or enjoy it (he referenced some interview Trevor Noah did with Tomi Lahren and I had to go looking for it coz I skipped that one). I loved the book because; in as much as it was talking of his personal experience with anxiety, he brought in a professional to correlate his experiences with clinical aspects and I could see myself in some of his experiences. Plus when he was talking about him dealing drugs, that came off like a scene from the Television series The Wire.

Some of my favorite parts of the book were:

“This sort of anxiety attack always happens whenever I reach a new level of success. I start over-thinking about the new devils that come with the new levels. Great things can be happening all around me and my mind gets stuck playing a loop of the worst possible scenarios.” (I have been through this so many times)

“My biggest fears come from my insecurities. Specifically, those rooted in what I perceive to be other peoples’ opinion of me. My issue was never with being a pussy. Only with being perceived that way.”

At a time where mental illness is on the rise, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone and everyone. Good reads rates it 4.15 so you know it is worth a try.