THE LIST: DVDs, CDs and books hitting stores this week

DVDS

"The Great Debaters" (PG-13): Race in America continues its hot-topic status, judging by this year's presidential campaign. But if you need a reminder that we've all come a long way, baby, this earnest, stand-up-and-cheer tale provides a timely reminder.

Denzel Washington stars in and directs this fact-based drama, set in small-town 1935 Texas, about the members of an all-black college's winning debate team, who battle Jim Crow -- and each other -- on the road to glory. Sure, it's formulaic, but Washington shows welcome restraint in recounting a story that could have easily degenerated from inspiration to manipulation.

Also out today: "Mad Money" (PG-13); "Untraceable" (R); "A Raisin in the Sun" (PG-13); "Youth Without Youth" (R); "Sergeants 3" (G); "The Tender Trap" (Unrated); "Some Came Running" (Unrated); "The Gunfighter" (Unrated); "Man of the West" (Unrated); "Indiana Jones: The Adventure Collection" (PG).

CDS

Foxy Brown, "Brooklyn's Don Diva": As tough as the razor-blades-in-her-hair femme fatale from whom she cribbed her name, hip-hop drama mama Foxy Brown is back with her first album in seven years.

Since the release of her last disc, 2001's "Broken Silence," Brown has weathered a pair of aborted albums, a label switch and a battle with hearing loss that threatened to end her career.

But as to be expected from this ballsy, battering ram of an MC, Brown has returned with a bang, recruiting a battalion of A-list producers -- Kanye West, Timbaland, The Neptunes, Swizz Beats -- to help craft an album as unflinching as Brown's chipped-from-ice scowl.

Also out today: Regina Belle, "Love Forever Shines"; The Black Angels, "Directions to See a Ghost"; T Bone Burnett, "Tooth of Crime"; Death Cab For Cutie, "Narrow Stairs"; Dokken, "Lightning Strikes Again"; Duffy, "Rockferry"; Filter, "Anthems for the Damned"; Bill Frisell, "History, Mystery"; Local H, "Twelve Angry Months"; Jason Mraz, "We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things"; Old 97's, "Blame It on Gravity"; Keith Sweat, "Just Me"; and 10 Years, "Division."

BOOKS

"Up Till Now: The Autobiography" by William Shatner: The "Star Trek" actor uses anecdotes and self-deprecating humor as he recounts his life, beginning as a kid in Montreal and on through his career as an actor, writer and director.

Also hitting shelves: "Bright Shiny Morning" by James Frey; "I Still Have It ... I Just Can't Remember Where I Put It" by Rita Rudner; "The Steel Wave" by Jeff Shaara; "Don't Fill Up on the Antipasto: Tony Danza's Father-Son Cookbook" by Tony Danza; "The Art of Racing in the Rain" by Garth Stein; "It's Our Ship: The No-Nonsense Guide to Leadership" by D. Michael Abrashoff; "Love the One You're With" by Emily Giffin; "Scream for Me" by Karen Rose; "Shadow Command" by Dale Brown; "Swine Not?" by Jimmy Buffett; and "What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and What's Wrong with Washington" by Scott McClellan.