Complex Presents Dummy Boy

Dummy Boy is not my usual fare. My decision to read it was not unbiased (I know the author), and my review probably won't be either, but I do believe the fact that I tore through Dummy Boy cover to cover in less than 24 hours is a testament to Shawn Setaro's writing and storytelling abilities. This story was a wild ride! Dummy Boy is divided into two parts. The first half provides some biographical background on Tekashi's early life and then goes into a lot of detail on his career development, his rising fame, and his gang connections in Brooklyn. The second half of the book is a play-by-play of the racketeering trial in which Tekashi was a key cooperating witness. Both halves are told with enough context for even someone wholly uninformed about the events to understand, and the story is compelling enough that I never lost interest in reading it – even lacking any specific interest in the people involved. While I imagine most readers who pick up this book will do so with some knowledge and curiosity about the events, I can attest that it's a thoroughly engaging read even for the reader who has neither.