Kanye West’s literary debut

What happened

Rapper Kanye West has posted the first three pages of his forthcoming book, Thank You And You’re Welcome, on his website. The book—West’s collaboration with designer and author J. Sakiya Sandifer—is a collection of “Kanye-isms,” and is slated for release later this month.

What the commentators said

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“We hope” Kanye West’s forthcoming book is a “joke,” said the blog Mollygood, but it “doesn’t seem to be.” Thank You “offers sage wisdom rarely seen outside of bumper stickers,” such as, “‘Don’t let people think you owe them something. That puts you in a position of weakness.’” If anything, “the book is basically a testament to West’s extreme paranoia and unwillingness to trust others.” The publishers are “horribly misguided and silly” if they think “that because West is rich he’s in a position to dispense advice.”

It’s doubtful that West’s book is meant to be taken too seriously, said Todd Martens in a Los Angeles Times blog. It’s simply “a lighthearted glimpse into the mind of a mega-star artist.” But with that said, there’s “no word on if there’s a ‘Kanye-ism’ that could be applied to any of his post-award show rants.”

“For all of his childlike poutiness and tantrum throwing,” said the blog Stereohyped, “Kanye West has picked up a lot of wisdom over the years. And it’s wisdom he wants to share with us all—for a price, of course.” But hey, like his book says, “nothing in life is free, kids.”