Toya may have said she wasn’t interested in writing a book that tells it all but she wrote something better and more inspiring. While so many people anticipated a book that divulges her life with her ex-husband DeWayne Carter (aka Lil Wayne better known to her and throughout her book as Dream), she chose to do something more informative for her readers. Although she began her book with a foreword from her ex (where he shares some very encouraging and supportive words about Toya) the book is not about him. In a few chapters, Toya discusses her frustration with being labeled as ONLY “Dream’s Baby Mama” prior to making a name for herself but she does not use that to make this book what it turned it is (successful)! In those same chapters, she opens up about her relationship with Lil Wayne to inspire others who have been in similar love triangles. Toya does share with her readers how Lil Wayne played her for other women many times but she also shares how she played herself by selling herself short waiting for the relationship to last. She allowed herself to wait on Wayne until it took three proposals, a marriage and several heartbreaks before she decided to let go. What I like about this book is that Toya teaches her readers how to avoid hanging on to love when it is not shown by the other partner in the relationship.
Toya begins her story by opening up with an introduction of why she believes why she was dealt her hand of life. In this book, Toya really sets the stage by sharing tips on how to overcome some of the experiences she has endured for her young readers. Those tips are title “Toya’s Priceless Gem’s” and they are found at the end of every chapter. Toya tries to connect the outside world to her inside experiences by sharing detailed information about her life. Never did she give too much information but enough to make others check their own situation if they were going through similar experiences. For example, in her second chapter titled “Boys to Men” she shares details about her relationship experiences when she first started dating Keith, Mitch, and even Dream. In those experiences she shares what her feelings were like at that time in her life, and then she give her readers a Priceless Gem related to that chapter to remember her by and how to react if they were ever in a similar situation.
Although Toya grew up with a mixture of disappointments, confusion, sadness and happiness she doesn’t put up a front for anyone when sharing her personal experiences in some of her chapter’s titled “Sex & Love, Pregnancy and Motherhood, Drugs and Alcohol, Heart Break and Healing, and Gossip”. In her chapter titled “Domestic Violence” she shares a story about a good friend of hers named Shawnte, whom had lost her life behind domestic violence because of her ex-boyfriend’s obsession to be possessive. Toya shared the pain and hurt she felt over that experience and asked that others be aware when they may be in an abusive relationship.
Toya has been through it all, love, sacrifice, fighting the “other” chicks, living from house to house as a little girl, failing her high school exit exam, being stalked by strangers, having a failed marriage, and the birth of her daughter, Reginae. She was determined to make a name for herself and eventually she did, as we can all see through her reality show “Toya: A Family Affair”. Toya wraps up her book with how she finally found true love with her fiancé (at the time) Mickey “Memphitz” Wright. This book is definitely a good inspiration for those who are going through similar situations!
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