R E K. (bigstone) - , reviewed on 11/30/2018 + 1443 more book reviews

This memoir is his story - Steve Pemberton. He was a bi-racial child whose abusive childhood could negatively affect the man he would someday become. At age five, he found himself as a foster child in Massachusetts foster care system with "parents" who only want to collect the money for his care. He lived in a dark basement until the social worker is due to arrive when he was moved to a delightful room upstairs to persuade the worker what good parents they were and how well he was being treated. A bright lad who learns quickly to make the most of learning knowing, Steve realizes that he just has to survive until he can leave the foster system. One reviewer noted that he beat the odds and became "better, not bitter." He made it through childhood by modeling on those who believed in him and encouraged his educational efforts. While it may seem unbelievable good people helped him enter college and graduate to become a successful profession with charming family of his own.

This book is heart breaking at timesa but it is so well written that I often felt I was sitting next to Steve Pemperton. Abandoned by his parents, he was tossed into the state's foster care program. I found this Nicholas A. Ferroni quote in another review. It summarizes the message of the book so much well. "We do not know what experiences students bring to school with them from home every. single. day Students who are loved at home come to school to learn, and students who aren't come to school to be loved". So some people helped Steve go beyond his horrible childhood to become a man who could contribute to society, find a good job and raise a well adjusted family.

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