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Lately, there's been a lot of talk about relationships between Black men and women. Well, actually it's mostly not talk; it's a lot of finger-pointing and avoiding responsibility. What's new, right?

Then there's the dating book genre, geared towards women--because apparently we're the ones obsessed with relationships--that tries to profit on the lack of communication and understanding that can plague unions, and the fact that relationships are work, period; there's no way getting around that. But if you create a catchy title that can also serve as a twisted affirmation--think "He's Just Not That into You" or "Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man"--you (it helps if you're a celebrity) can impart advice on how to capture that coveted, loving committed relationship.

Now here's Hill Harper, attempting to broaden the coupling discussion with his new book, "The Conversation: How Black Men and Women Can Build Loving, Trusting Relationships," which he views as a "dialogue across the barricades that men and women have erected to protect themselves from each other." And in the first line of the guide, he puts forth his disclaimer: "I am in no way representing myself as an expert in relationships, but rather as a man on a journey, attempting to figure it all out for myself."

Read the rest of the review.