Da Baddest

Hip-hop artist Trina recounts her rise to fame in her fast and funny, if guarded, debut. Before her breakout verse on Trick Daddy’s 1998 single “Nann,” Trina lived a comfortable life in Miami’s Liberty City neighborhood, surrounded by friends who shielded her from the area’s violent crime: “Someone with allegiances to my family was always a stone’s throw away,” she writes. Trina’s mother instilled great confidence in her (“We were the epitome of bad bitches, so we took every opportunity to show out”), which came in handy when Miami rapper Trick Daddy asked her to guest on “Nann,” and she parlayed the track’s success into a record deal. Much of the account focuses on the writing and recording of Trina’s debut album, Da Baddest Bitch, her label’s skepticism about its follow-up, Diamond Princess, and her eventual decision to release music independently. On occasion, Trina punctuates the memoir’s chatty, lighthearted tone with snippets of heavier material, including gut-wrenching descriptions of her miscarriages and breakup with Lil’ Wayne. For the most part, though, this fails to pierce the author’s steely exterior. It’s best suited to Trina’s dedicated fans. Agent: Nicki Richesin, Dunow, Carlson, & Lerner. (Oct.)