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In this poignant tale of self-discovery, a young man struggles to survive the New York City housing projects in the face of familial, communal, and personal devastation. Born to a thirteen-year-old in the bathroom of his family's small apartment, Abraham Singleton enters a world laden with the obstacles inherent in an impoverished community. In spite of the crack epidemic and the HIV crisis that ravage their neighborhood, the Singleton family -- cousins, an uncle, an aunt, Abraham, and his mother -- is held together by Abraham's heroic grandmother, whose deep faith and stoic nature have always given them a sense of wholeness and hope. But when the family goes through several harrowing losses, not even his grandmother may be strong enough to lead them through. At the center of this story is Abraham, the youngest of the Singletons. Deeply intuitive and cerebral, he is determined to thrive in a place that has destroyed the dreams of those around him. College means opportunity, yet it also means leaving behind those he loves. Abraham's journey into adulthood will break his heart but ultimately offer the possibility of redemption. In this haunting, lyrical, and evocative novel, Matthew Goodman composes a paean to the power of family and belonging in the African-American community. Hold Love Strong is a spellbinding coming-of-age tale about love, hope, and the will to survive, and a stunning universal story about the incredible capacity of the human spirit.
Publication Year: 2009
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First Reads win!!! (again!!!) YAY! (I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads)
This beautifully written novels tells the story of Abraham Singleton known as A by his family, a young African American male who is born into a world many today would find hard to understand. The story takes place in projects of New York, a section that everyone refers to as Ever Park.
Drugs, violence, and poverty are constant struggles that A and his family face on a daily basis. A's mother had him when she was only 13 years old, a child herself, and since his father was not at all in the picture, A's cousin Donnel (no more than 5 years old when he was born) takes on not only the fatherly role in his life but his caretaker as well.
It is plain to see that Abraham's life is not going to be easy. He goes through daily life surrounded by drugs and violence, his mother becomes addicted to cocaine and his Uncle is arrested for selling drugs. However, despite all that A has going against him, he pulls through.
While I couldn't possibly know or fully understand the hardships that this young man and his family had to face, I was still able to form a connection with the characters. I cared about what would happen to them, and I couldn't put this book down.
I found the use of the word n**** to be a little distracting for me (I can't stand the word myself), but the author Matthew Aaron Goodman wrote the novel so wonderfully that I was able to look past that. It was rich with language that made me feel like there was more to Abraham than the ghetto he was surrounded by. I am excited for more novels to be written by Goodman.
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