Rating: 
Summary: Laughable
Review: What we have here is a criminal genius; Star Parker was a professional at working the late '70s/ early '80s welfare system. This is one lady projecting her pathological abuse of the welfare system onto an entire nation and political system, with potentially catastrophic results.
Star gives an account of her welfare days: selling medicare vouchers for profit, working under the table, and getting pregnant four times, all as ways to fatten her pocketbook and live off the system. In hearing Star talk about the financial luxuries of her life on the welfare system, don't forget that she wasn't just a welfare recipient, she was a con artist who puts the leaders of our country to shame.
Star's conversion to Christianity seems to be her main asset. The fact that she's become religious seemingly cancels out anything that she's done in the past. Can a few trips to church cleanse a soul so sullied? Or, more pertinently, does it give one the right to judge the morals of others?
This portrayal of the "Welfare Queen" at her most wretched must have fulfilled every fantasy of the right-wing agenda-pushers. One can't help but wonder if this is Star's most brilliant con job yet. They must have paid her millions to get out there and sell the party line to a previously untapped audience.
For somebody who is into taking responsibility for her life, Star points a lot of fingers outward. If morality was taught in school, she wouldn't have been promiscuous, if there was no welfare, she would have seized her life. After reading this book, it's hard not to get the impression that such a developed criminal mind wouldn't have found other "creative" inroads to easy money.
Rating: 
Summary: Jesus Christ would say
Review: "Give a man a fish and he eats for a day, teach a man to fish and he eats for a lifetime."
Rating:
Summary: Excellent hard hitting book
Review: As a Black Conservative successful businessman living in Southern California, I applaud Star Parker's book. We as African Americans can no longer look to the government(and/or Democrats) as our savior. As long as there are laws that protect us from being falsely jailed and/or lynched. We can (and should) compete to attain our life goals in this country regardless of the obsticles. Black America needs to wake up and stop blaming the "Man for keeping us down". As for myself, I am not, and will not, be treated or perceived as a victim. I am where I am today because of parents who cared enough to: 1. stay together 2. sacrifice so that I would have better opportunities 3. instill in me morals and values 4. discipline me to keep me on the right track 5. Teach me about the contributions of my ancestors, George Washington Carver, Harriet Tubman, etc. Kudos to Star Parker and others like her out there in the burgeoning Black Middle Class. A neglected, under served segment (by the Media) of the Black Community that is looking for a political party that refects its views and values. Hey Republicans, get a clue!! Sincerely, L. Poindexter Southern California
Rating:
Summary: Whose Welfare was Parker living on?
Review: As a woman who has also managed to work her way out of the system, I will say this. Had the system not existed for me, I would not have been able to achieve what I have today. Having a little money coming in (and it was very little) while I was going to school and working at a minimum wage job allowed me to keep body and soul together long enough to get ahead. I don't know what system Parker was in that allowed her to live in apartments with jacuzzis and drive around in cadillacs, I lived in a roach trap where kids couldn't play outside and I had to step over crack vials in order to get the mail. I lived on ramen noodles, peanut butter, hominy and tomato soup for more years than I care to remember. I did not own a car (couldn't afford to). All the other people I knew on assistance were in the same boat. If there were cadillacs and jacuzzis around they were in some other welfare state, cause we sure didn't have em! I think Parker is simply playing to the conservative myth that people on welfare live like kings and queens on someone elses money. This is a total lie. Parker's time could be better spent giving something back to the system that ultimately allowed her to succeed, instead of putting it (and the others who use it) down.
Rating:
Summary: Whose Welfare was Parker living on?
Review: As a woman who has also managed to work her way out of the system, I will say this. Had the system not existed for me, I would not have been able to achieve what I have today. Having a little money coming in (and it was very little) while I was going to school and working at a minimum wage job allowed me to keep body and soul together long enough to get ahead. I don't know what system Parker was in that allowed her to live in apartments with jacuzzis and drive around in cadillacs, I lived in a roach trap where kids couldn't play outside and I had to step over crack vials in order to get the mail. I lived on ramen noodles, peanut butter, hominy and tomato soup for more years than I care to remember. I did not own a car (couldn't afford to). All the other people I knew on assistance were in the same boat. If there were cadillacs and jacuzzis around they were in some other welfare state, cause we sure didn't have em! I think Parker is simply playing to the conservative myth that people on welfare live like kings and queens on someone elses money. This is a total lie. Parker's time could be better spent giving something back to the system that ultimately allowed her to succeed, instead of putting it (and the others who use it) down.
Rating:
Summary: Great story
Review: Far be it for a black person to step out from under the yolk of liberalism. Amazon readers, unite in your hatred for a woman who has made a wonderful life for herself. In the name of Hillary, who oes this woman think she is, being black, and not being a democrat. doesn't she know that the Republicans are evil racists?
Rating:
Summary: An awesome book from an awesome lady!!!
Review: I had the privalege of seeing Star Parker speak and then meet her at the Young America's Freedom Conference in San Diego. Her speech, much like her book, was awe-inspiring and wonderful as she tells of her dependancy on the government to living the American dream with house, family, business and God. This book shows what needs to happen in America, yet also warns conservatives of what we need to do to prosper. A must read for any American.
Rating:
Summary: Either you know it or you want to shout it down
Review: If God directs your life, this book will read like pure refreshment. If you prefer to make God in your image, some wimpy cosmic do-gooder that approves of your every action, you'll hate this book. Not more complicated than that.
Rating:
Summary: A terrible book which panders to our worst notions
Review: It is as though Parker said:"Hey, everybody! Look at me! I'm a black woman and I'm willing to give to you all of the silly stereotypes you believe about black Americans!" This lady is ridiculous. She makes her money by bashing her own race and telling us how evil things like the Minimum Wage and Social Security are. How ridiculous. Yeah right, Parker, the Minimum Wage is bad. Yeah right, lady, government is a monster. Yeah right, lady, Rush Libaugh is a really tolerant guy! Yeah, right, labor unions and civil rights organizations are evil. This book is a joke, period. It's nothing more than a book which panders to our worst stereotypes about blacks. It's got bad ideas. Star Parker is a sell-out - not only to black americans and their general welfare, but also to progressive and compassionate ideals. I am a proud moderate. Because I'm no conservative doesn't mean that I am 'anti-morality' or 'anti-personal responsibility.' It simply means that I think government should be active in our lives in such areas as health care, the environment and education. Mrs. Parker does not think so. This 'conservative leader' believes we should kill the Minimum Wage and privatize entitlement programs. Her ideology is a joke. What she did as a young person was terrible. By living off the government and then getting high, having multiple abortions and getting under the table jobs, Parker showed how wrong a person can go. She should face her responsibilities and - if she has nothing else positive to say - be quiet and stop trying to make money from her tragedy. This lady - with all due respect - is a sell-out to the core. She makes money from black America's tragedies.
Rating:
Summary: A Fallen Star Now Rises
Review: Ms. Parker is a woman with a knack for self-celebrity status and chutzpah to match. She is NOT the typical welfare mother in any way, shape or form, nor should she claim to represent anyone from that class. She sounds like the last party-goer rescued from a sinking ship who nows bashes anyone who had the bad taste to sail on the same boat. "I made it, too bad you didn't", seems to be her motto. Throughout her story, she seems to embody uncommonly good luck. Nowhere did I read of her experiencing REAL poverty, abuse or despair. She lived similar to the Sixties' era kids who ran away to Haight-Ashbury or the East Village living it up, knowing they had an out if they truly hit the skids. Star claiming this herself when pondering whether she should stay in L.A. or return to her family back East. How many real poor mothers have that option? Darned few, in my estimate. She is simply a youngster blessed with an energetic spirit, good looks, a flair for flamboyance, and the security if all goes wrong, there's a place she can go. Given those traits, it's no surprise she has metamorphed the way she has. It's called growing up, and nothing more. She simply found a bigger audience.
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