Breaking the Code of Silence
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by Alana Wyatt Smith  

Paperback: 116 pages
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation (April 3, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1436312655
ISBN-13: 978-1436312653
Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches

Book Review by Kam Williams         

 “I felt even more secure with this man than I had ever felt in an previous relationship. Even though he had a complicated past, filled with children and their demanding mothers, I still felt as though I was number one. These women never posed a threat to me... ever. His children’s mothers would call my cell phone to speak yo him and he always took their calls, as he felt it was disrespectful to do otherwise.

 

I knew I was his wife and these were just the mothers of his children. Watching him take control of these crazy situations just made me feel even more secure with him. We continued to live happily as husband and wife, even when people tried their hardest to break us up. Instead, it made our relationship even stronger and more powerful.”

—Alana on her marriage to Mos Def (pages 69)

Given the phenomenal success of Video Vixen Karrine Steffans’ tell-all, it was only a matter of time before other gold-diggers who’ve slept with a bunch of black celebrities would follow suit. Now, along comes 29 year-old, Canadian Alana Wyatt Smith, whose Breaking the Code of Silence is a bit disappointing, because she brags about her sexual conquest of lots of rappers and pro athletes, but doesn’t names names, except for Dante Smith, aka Mos Def

Apparently, he was the only sucker dumb enough to marry her, tying the knot after a whirlwind romance of less than 4 days and while he was still married to his previous wife. Def is an incurable romantic with a checkered past when it comes to relationships, as he is reported to have 5 kids with 4 different baby-mamas.

This book is less valuable as a memoir than as the tragic life story of a lost soul obviously still very much in need of intervention. Afterall she’s gone from stripping to Islam and back to stripping again. Half-Italian, half-Jamaican, exotic-looking Alana dropped out of junior high school to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become an adult entertainer.

This was not much of a surprise, as we learn that she had been sexually assaulted by an uncle at the age of 6. After the incest, she became the victim of further sexual and physical abuse which only compounded the original childhood trauma.

Nonetheless, just because you feeling sorry for Alana’s rough upbringing, doesn’t make it easy to sympathize with her disgusting behavior as an adult when she goes on the offensive, getting even with men every chance she gets. Her priorities totally out of order, she has a baby with a rap star, but doesn’t bother to raise the kid.

Instead, she remains boy crazy, especially over any guy who’s famous and has lots of money to burn. The fatal flaw of this frustrating autobiography is that she drops big hints about her numerous lovers but never reveals their identities. Who wants to read a kiss and tell where you have to guess whom the author is talking about?