Biggie: Voletta Wallace Remembers Her Son, Christopher Wallace, aka Notorious B.I.G.

The legend of Notorious B.I.G. (born Christopher Wallace, but also known as Biggie Smalls), has only grown since he was murdered on the night of March 9, 1997 - executed at point-blank range through the passenger side of his car. Due to their tremendous influence on hip-hop culture as well as their untimely deaths, Biggie's name has been paired with Tupac Shakur's and held up as examples of how stars can rise and fall. In this touching book, Biggie's mother Voletta Wallace now brings a human face back to the icon that was her beloved son. In this lavishly illustrated memoir, with many never-before-published photographs, Voletta Wallace charts her son's climb to stardom, recalling Biggie's childhood in Brooklyn, and how she tried to keep her bright, precocious son on the straight and narrow. She shares memories of the night that her son was shot, when she rushed to Los Angeles to be with Biggie's wife, Faith Evans. Straightforward and candid, Voletta Wallace condemns her son's 'friends' - who treated her with little respect after Biggie's death - and shares serious misgivings about the treacherous nature of the entertainment industry. Finally, she delves deeply into her own personal life, discussing her health scare and ongoing efforts to identify the killers of her son. With new photographs and opinions concerning A-list members of the hip-hop community, in addition to theories behind her son's unsolved murder, "Biggie" is not only a poignant tribute from a mother to son, but an eye-opening read.