AllMusic's David Jeffries called the album "a properly financed version of his Ghetty Green LP with beefier beats and more polished production" but noted that its appeal will depend on "the listener's tolerance for his tried-and-true, down-and-dirty formula", concluding that: "[T]he single-minded Crook by da Book might not woo many newcomers toward his hard-thugging corner of the hip-hop world, but Hypnotize Minds fans worried a Oscar would make this family go soft can now exhale."
AllMusic's David Jeffries called the album "a properly financed version of his Ghetty Green LP with beefier beats and more polished production" but noted that its appeal will depend on "the listener's tolerance for his tried-and-true, down-and-dirty formula", concluding that: "[T]he single-minded Crook by da Book might not woo many newcomers toward his hard-thugging corner of the hip-hop world, but Hypnotize Minds fans worried a Oscar would make this family go soft can now exhale."