HOW TO MAKE BLACK AMERICA BETTER by Tavis Smiley. Tavis has invited African American celebrities to share their views on what the black community must do in order to make America better.

Exhorting black Americans to respect themselves and support their community, Tavis Smiley opens with 10 "challenges," focusing on education, health and money. These themes are underscored in the second section of the book, which features a collection of short entries from 28 black movers and shakers, from Maxine Waters to Shaquille O'Neal. While the litany of concerns and lists of remedies may seem repetitious, the net effect is a consensus on the needs of black America: more emphasis on educational excellence, more patronage of black enterprises, more voter registration and political involvement, and more pride in black history and culture. Reform of the prison system is urged by many, as well as a reckoning within the black church with homophobia and sexism. Spokespeople for very different perspectives sometimes offer strikingly similar thoughts. The book ends with transcripts of two discussions with leading black thinkers held at the Democratic convention of 2000. Again, there's much consensus, thanks either to the absence of black Republicans or to a willingness to think inclusively.

Tavis Smiley, formerly the host of BET Tonight, is currently a commentator on the Tom Joyner Morning Show, a nationally syndicated radio show.

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