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    A Hope in the Unseen: An American Odyssey from the Inner City to the Ivy League
    A Hope in the Unseen: An American Odyssey from the Inner City to the Ivy League
    A Hope in the Unseen: An American Odyssey from the Inner City to the Ivy League
    Audiobook17 hours

    A Hope in the Unseen: An American Odyssey from the Inner City to the Ivy League

    Written by Ron Suskind

    Narrated by Peter Jay Fernandez

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    New York Times best-selling investigative journalist Ron Suskind based this book on his Pulitzer Prize-winning articles about Cedric Jennings, a black youth struggling to survive one of D.C.'s toughest school districts. A moving portrait of inner city life, A Hope in the Unseen offers a view of life through the eyes of someone trying desperately to make his way up from the bottom.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateSep 26, 2008
    ISBN9781436183611
    A Hope in the Unseen: An American Odyssey from the Inner City to the Ivy League
    Author

    Ron Suskind

    Ron Suskind is the author of the # 1 New York Times bestseller The Price of Loyalty: George W. Bush, the White House, and the Education of Paul O'Neill. He is also the author of the critically acclaimed A Hope in the Unseen. He has been senior national affairs reporter for The Wall Street Journal, where he won the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing. Visit the author's website at www.ronsuskind.com.

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    Reviews for A Hope in the Unseen

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    • 4/5
      Phenomenal story about beating odds, making tough decisions, and trusting yourself. The audio itself skipped a few seconds quite a bit requiring me to fill in the small gaps, not an impossible task, but definitely took away from the perfect experience. Still a very worth while read/listen and thank you deeply for sharing on this platform.
    • 4/5
      5570. A Hope in the Unseen An American Odyssey from the Inner City to the Ivy League, by Ron Suskind (read 21 Jul 2018)The author came to know Cedric Jennings as student at D.C. high school which is a high school of many failing kids. Cedric, due to a strong mother (now, though she has never married and has three kids by three different men) and a vigorous church life is determined to succeed and avoids the stupid things so many of his classmates succumb to. The book tells how he succeeded being accepted at Brown in Providence, RI, and his first year at Brown is related (in the present tense!) in much detail. I admit all the mental turmoil which Cedric goes through I found not enjoyable reading and one does not know how he will do but assumes he will do all right else there would not be this book. But there is a lot of angst and one almost despairs over poor choices Cedric's mother makes in regard to her finances. And Cedric does not do a whole lot better sometimes. But it works out and the book while depicting a lot to fret about does end on an upbeat note.
    • 4/5
      Very well written account of a gifted black student from D.C. The obstacles Cedric Jennings encounters as he struggles through probably one of the worst, most dangerous, crime ridden high schools are seemingly insurmountable. And the difficulties continue as he continues his education at Brown. Very informative and eye opening. Every white person needs to read a book like this.
    • 5/5
      A title is chosen to represent a work as a whole. In the nonfiction work, A Hope in the Unseen written by Ron Suskind the title’s meaning is explained throughout the work itself. It is mentioned that “the unseen may be a place in your heart; he says cheerily.” To find this elusive unseen though is the underlying message. This message, though explored through the life of Cedric, is one we all share. We all just want to feel a sense of belonging in the world do we not? So the question then posed is are we like Cedric, “one young man still searching for the elusive unseen-a place, he now says, “where I won’t live in two worlds, but one”- feeling a surge of very reasonable faith.” By reading this work one can come to the conclusion of whether or not their search has just begun or rather if their searching has concluded.This work takes place in a couple different locations, including: Ballou, an intercity high school where violence and failure is the norm, to Brown University, an Ivy League school where everyone is expected to do and be great. Cedric the main character, is seen to have “made it out” of this world full of violence where he was considered the exception, and now faces the real and hard process of adjustment. This process for Cedric though was not an easy one. He deals with being ostracized by others and also goes through a period in which he has no sense of belonging. Cedric has never had a good relationship with his father Cedric Sr., which is due partially to the fact that he is in and out of jail, to the complicated world of him just not caring. On the other side of the coin Cedric’s mother, Barbara is giving Cedric her all while she struggles financially to support herself and her son. All of the many characters in Suskind’s novel have their own story to tell and affect Cedric in what would be considered a large way and in other instances a more subtle effect.After reading this work I have come away with two major goals in which Suskind has hoped to achieve, both of which goals are plainly stated in the novel. One goal was that, “During the last two and a half years, while reporting and writing this book, my [Suskind] aim has been to see America through Cedric’s eyes.” As far as achieving this goal, Suskind definitely gives a glimpse into Cedric’s view of America through showing the reader simple aspects of Cedric’s daily life and interactions. We see his world with his mother and the struggle of having to constantly move and change homes as the bills pile up and the sacrifices in which his mother Barbara has to make. Outside of Barbara, Suskind also introduces many other characters, who will all not only play some part in Cedric’s life, but will be seen developing their own lives throughout the work as well. Suskind’s ability to develop everyone’s life at once in a cohesive manner creates a wonderful narrative in which there are no flat characters present.Another goal that was prevalent in this work is, “[Suskind’s] hope that this book will similarly confuse dug-in racial expectations and, in some small way, help weave the black experience and white experience –so commonly seen as parallel threads- into a shared national narrative.” This goal is strived for through the presence of common struggles in which the work deals with, including: racial issues, friendship, overcoming the expectations of others and those set of yourself, perseverance, and surpassing obstacles. These things shown throughout the work are issues that unite us all no matter the race and make this book one that is worth the reading.This work is very well written. One tends to forget that Suskind is even present as the story unfolds. This erasing of his own presence throughout the story adds to one’s appreciation of his skill as a writer and also the lives of those within the narrative. Suskind tells of his writing style and mentions that all things stated in his book have been double checked by others and characters have read over their own portions in the book. This I believe is what gives the characters a real element of roundedness because through Suskind having the chance to hear the thoughts of his characters not only in a firsthand account, but also a second, he can nail down their true emotions and thoughts.What is so important about this work though, is the strive to make it seen in the characters’ lives and the connections made along the way. As mentioned in the book, “The hungriest lion is not the one at the top of the hill, but the lion just beneath him, who wants to get to the top.” One really learns what hope means in this work and how it affects us as human beings in life. One must never give up on their dreams because they are possible as long as you believe they are. The second you doubt yourself though everything will begin to fall apart and it is up to you to pick up the pieces, but you are still not alone.This book reminds me of the well written work, brown girl dreaming by Jaqueline Woodson. Although the main character, Jaqueline herself, would be identified as black there are lessons and experiences within her work to which all nationalities can relate. The hope seen within this narrative reminds me of Outcasts United as well, which was written by a man named Warren St. John who, like Suskind, tells the stories of real lives and the struggles in which the people present in his narrative have faced. All while they kept up an attitude of hope and endurance. Of course, I would recommend this work of literature to any and every reader. It is a great book to not only open up the long standing conversation about racial issues, but to let others know there is a hope in the unseen which they should strive towards. ““Hebrews 11:1,” says Mr. Taylor. “The substance of faith is a hope in the unseen.” If one is in need of a little faith and encouragement A Hope in the Unseen is the book to read. It will pull on your emotions and give you the reader a strong dose of “I can do this”.
    • 4/5
      A Hope in the Unseen ,written by Ron Suskind, is a nonfiction story which follows the life of Cedric Jennings; a boy from one of the most dangerous high schools in Washington, D.C. just looking for a way out. Cedric is surrounded by slackers and dropouts and somehow finds the will to want something better in life. However, Cedric is faced with many challenges in his life, from an absent father to a mother struggling to pay the rent. These do not sway Cedric’s ambitious nature as he begins to apply to some of the most prestigious colleges in the country, eventually ending up at Brown University. The book follows Cedric’s path from a rough and tough high school to the acclaimed Brown University. It spares no details of all the trials and tribulations Jennings experienced while trying to get out his violent neighborhood and is an eye-opening read.As I opened this book I was preparing myself for a very emotional, yet uplifting read about a boy who fought for a better life. I was surprised to find that it was not like every other inspirational story I have read. Suskind followed Cedric around for two years in order to complete this book which, in turn, led to him witnessing some of the darker sides of Cedric. He showed Cedric in his low moments, the moments where he didn’t make the best decisions, and the moments where he hurt the ones he loved most. I think this set this book apart in a very good way. It provided the reader with an uplifting story about a boy who made something of his life without turning him into the poster of “the perfect child”. This caused Cedric, as well as the other people in this story, to be very alive and completely human to the reader. I believe that Suskind successfully achieved in telling the true story of Cedric Jennings.Suskind writes with such honesty and raw emotion I had to continue to remind myself that I was reading a true story because I couldn’t believe how Cedric could overcome some of the obstacles placed in front of him. He was able to capture the soul of each character and stay true to who they were as a person. This is due largely in part to the fact that Suskind let each person who was involved in the story read and approve whatever he had written about them before he finalized the chapter. This gave each person the chance to make sure that they were being accurately represented in the book. Suskind also wasn’t afraid to show the dark side to each of the characters. Barbra Jennings, Cedric’s mother, was a hard working woman who gave everything she had to her son. Because of this, she would sometimes lose her cool when it seemed like she didn't appreciate him. For example, Cedric complained about having to do the dishes and Barbara yelled “ I pay the rent here. I support you. I give you everything to you. You don’t want to do your part? You don’t like it? When you complain ti makes me want to kill you! You hear me?”. This speaks volumes to not only Suskind as a writer, but as a person as well. The trust that Cedric and Barbara placed in Suskind to accurately portray their lives is unbelievable. They put their lives in his hands and I believe he did a beautiful job in showing the ups and downs of their relationships and lives.I recently read the book The Pact: Three Young Men Make a Promise and Fulfill a Dream. I found this book to be very similar to A Hope in the Unseen with a few minor differences. In both stories the boys grew up in rough neighborhoods that were filled with violence and crime. In The Pact however, the three boys had a much harder time sticking to their goal of getting out of the crime ridden streets than Cedric did. The Pact was also written by the leading men in the book while A Hope in the Unseen is written by a different author and therefore shows more of the flaws in Cedric’s personality than the three men. If you are interested in reading more books about escaping poverty, I would highly suggest reading The Pact as well.If you are looking for a cute book to provide you with some inspiration on a Sunday afternoon, this is not the book for you. It tackles tough subject matter that can be painful and frustrating to read. There are also many points in the book where I did not like Cedric. He is a typical teenager trying to figure out his life plans and balance all his raging emotions at the same time. This book is not for someone who loves to love the protagonist because I promise you, you will get frustrated with Cedric’s choices from time to time. However, if you love watch the struggle of someone who so desperately wants a better life for themselves, read this book. When I closed the back cover I immediately began to miss Cedric. This is when I knew this book had truly touched my heart. I wanted to know where Cedric ended up and I hoped he had continued to be successful in his life. I would highly recommend A Hope in the Unseen.
    • 3/5
      In this non-fiction story, a young African-American man is forced to make difficult decisions and overcome challenges regarding his life, relationships, and the importance of his education. Ron Suskind portrays and follows the life of the main character, Cedric Lavar Jennings. He lives in a dangerous section of Washington, D.C. where kids drop out of high school left and right, and the potential for getting killed over something as harmless as a leather jacket is always looming. However, Cedric is different; he is determined to beat the odds and get out of the neighborhood to bigger and better things. We first see him in 1993, as a straight-A junior in high school at Ballou. From there we journey with him through the struggles of high school, his difficult transition to Brown, and eventually his career. Even though the book is about Cedrics’ journey, we see a great deal into the lives of those around him as well. Barbara, his mother, has countless appearances in each chapter, and we see the difficult changes in the relationship between mother and son, as well as her own financial struggles. His father is featured several times throughout the chapters, though he is not consistent in Cedrics’ life. Nearly every time a new character is introduced, there is a page or so dedicated to their back-story or an explanation of their involvement with Cedric. The book itself is very well written; Suskind has a knack for detail and fails to leave anything out. This can be tedious for some, but appreciation is necessary when you realize how long he must have spent on this. He also does an excellent job of portraying the main characters (Cedric, Barbara, his friends at the respective schools) and painting them in a very real light. However, I did not particularly enjoy this story. In my opinion, Cedric is not a likable character enough to get me involved. I also found the book to be a bit repetitious at times; the same problems over and over again. While I realize that this is reality, and reality isn't always tied up into a perfect bow, I felt that the story didn't have any great triumphant moments that a story like this usually involves. It is supposed to be a success story, but it is depicted in an almost depressing manner. Cedric works very hard in high school to get where he wants to be at an ivy league school. But when he is accepted to Brown we don’t get very long to celebrate before more issues arise. Soon we see him struggle to fit in at Brown as well. He is miles away from where he should be academically, and he can’t help but notice that the majority of the student population is white. He has difficulty keeping up with work, and maintaining a healthy relationship with those he left behind. I can’t help but feel like the reader didn't get the celebratory moment they were waiting for. It’s a reiteration of the same few conflicts disguised as something else, in a new environment or with new people. The evolution of this story reminds me of the one in Running The Rift, by Naomi Benaron. It is an excellent tale of an aspiring Olympic runner, caught in the middle of the Rwandan Genocide. While it is a great story, and beautifully written, the main character doesn't get everything that is necessary for an inspiring message. As a reader, we are invested in the characters lives, and we want to see them do well, beat the odds, and be amazing. Though this is not always a practical expectation, no matter how much we want it to be. A Hope in the Unseen illustrates reality very well, and hits hard on main themes like acceptance, overcoming challenges, and the importance of perseverance. I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for a book with anything mentioned above. Nonetheless, if you are a reader like me who enjoys more uplifting (though not always reasonable) novels, then you will not be satisfied with the progression of Suskind’s book.
    • 3/5
      For most middle and upperclass members of society in America, college-bound students do not truly realize how much of an opportunity it is to attend a second or four-year university. A minute few go because it is “expected” of them by their families, and they would be looked down upon if they chose another path. Others go to get a degree in their chosen field, while some decide to party and socialize. These young adults do not consider the various costs of college, glazing over the benefits of tuition, room and board, and application fees because money, for them, is a bottomless pit. With more and more scholarships being awarded each year, students also do not have to worry about the fine-print on loans, if need be, because their parents handle the expenses. It is proven that one’s opinions on culture, sexuality, and religion expand by going to college, but prosperous students that come from underprivileged or lower-class families rarely have the same opportunity. These students have to find alternate sources of income, such as federalized loans or the military, to pay for school. This, in turn, leaves the student in hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt, which will last for the rest of their life. In Ron Suskind’s true story, A Hope In The Unseen, Lavar Cedric Jennings, an African American male growing up in the slums of Washington, District of Columbia, struggles with paying for—and eventually attending—Brown University. A Hope Unseen opens up with a poignant assembly at Ballou High School, where Lavar—or “Cedric,” as his mother calls him—is a junior. The description of the town’s mayor—“his criminal past—his much publicized conviction for cocaine possession and subsequent time served”—shows that most of the citizens, even ones that hold positions in political offices, have some type of criminal background. This brief description does not give much hope to the dejected students sitting in the bleachers, along with the school’s failed attempt of bribing students with cash to strive harder in class. Cedric is one of the few that has reached this goal numerous times, but is embarrassed by it because he does not have a lot of friends and is teased if he accepts his payment. Throughout his years as a student, Cedric continuously works against himself, dealing with his identity as a student, and also his racial identity—an African American in the mid-90s from the ghetto. Clarence Taylor, Cedric’s chemistry teacher at Ballou, is a mentor but also a friend, one of the people that really pushes Cedric to reach his utmost potential at an early age. As mentioned before, Barbara Jennings is Cedric’s mother, and was also raised in poverty like her son. Their church, Scripture Cathedral, is their main support system throughout multiple evictions from their apartment and payment struggles. Most of the time, “She’d rather not notice the cars other parents are driving, the clothes they’re wearing, and the ease with which they move”. Meanwhile, Cedric Gilliam, Cedric’s father, tries to establish a relationship with his son, although it is difficult to do so because he is in and out of prison for dealing and using drugs. After a successful junior year, Cedric applies for a summer program at MIT for minorities. Although he is told that, “You’re going to be up there with lots of very smart white kids, and if you’re not sure about who you are, you could get eaten alive,” he is determined to make it—and he does. Within a few months, he is accepted to Brown University, among other top schools across the country. During this time, he meets Donald Korb, a generous doctor who—after reading about his story in a newspaper article—offers to pay for Cedric’s education and allows him a monthly allowance. While at Brown, Cedric meets an eclectic group of characters, like his roommate, Rob Burton, and his close friend, Zayd Dohrn, whom he is able to confide in when times are tough. In spite of accomplishing many of his goals, he struggles to learn the difference between separating himself from the behaviors of others, and accepting their decisions that he cannot control. Overall, A Hope In The Unseen succeeds in what it sets out to do—telling Cedric’s story—but the writing pace, at least for me, was a little slow. Most of Suskind’s narrations were very straightforward and curt, with details askew, as if he just threw them in for word-count rather than importance. Despite the fact that there were a few poetic passages, such as “ (…) Cedric feels reconstructed—bigger, somehow, than he was before,” the biographical novel reads more like an account of daily actions—Cedric felt this, he did that, while Barbara cannot pay such-and-such bill again—than it should have. I think that A Hope Unseen is a stellar example of the motto, “If you believe it, you can achieve it,” because it shows that with enough perseverance, triumph will come. Suskind’s book reminded me of another one I had to read called Running the Rift, which was about a boy named Jean Patrick who wanted to make it to the Olympics for running. Jean faced many struggles on his own, such as being a different nationality than most of his country that, at the time, could get him killed, but he was smart enough—like Cedric—to know when, exactly, to tell the truth. What A Hope Unseen fails to achieve, however, is the attention to detail and personal connections that Running the Rift contained—the entire time, I felt as if I was just skimming the surface of the novel, rather than diving in deep. By reading this book, readers can learn the importance of setting goals, the steps to complete them, and also the significance of keeping hope alive, even when it seems like one is not able to. Granted, I did not care for A Hope In The Unseen as much as I would have liked to, but I would recommend it to high school and freshman-year college students, so they could experience the first-hand challenges of a student trying to make it into an Ivy League.
    • 4/5
      A Hope in the Unseen is a non-fiction novel that takes place in the 1990’s and the protagonist is an African American boy named Cedric Jennings. Cedric lives in the most dangerous neighborhood in Washington D.C; there are drug deals, crimes, students dropping out of school, and no hope in this town. Back in this time, people thought that African Americans were thought to be less than whites, so they did not get the respect they deserved. Cedric is not like most of the students that go to Ballou high school; he’s intelligent and bright beyond words, but he is not very social and he has no friends. Ballou’s dropout rate is in the double digits and there are very low standards, so Cedric definitely stands out. His mother faces eviction multiple times and this story goes on to show how Cedric deals with not only his problems, but also his families. A few years go by and Cedric wants to take the next step and apply to college. He comes across Brown University, and it becomes his dream. Cedric has the grades to get accepted but he worries that because of his black culture he will be declined. Time goes by and he finally gets into the college he’s been dreaming of and can’t wait to start his new life where his mother doesn’t have to tell him not to talk to the drug dealers on every corner; like when he was younger. Living at Brown has opened his eyes to a whole new world and made him realize where his home actually is. As time goes by at Brown, Cedric finds more and more reasons not to go back to his hometown because he doesn’t think of that being home anymore. This is an odyssey of a young boy changing his life. Reading and learning about different cultures/backgrounds fascinates me, so reading about this African American boy trying to make it to his dream college when he comes from a school where they don’t believe in their students really inspired me; especially because he did it. This novel goes through a journey where you can look through someone else’s perspective than your own. In the beginning I couldn’t put this book down because I just wanted to see what happens next, but as the book goes on it gets somewhat slow. From the first chapter you read about how difficult Cedric’s life is and for me, I realize how blessed I am. But, as the chapters go by it is very repetitive on the same issues. If you have an open mind and want to read something that can inspire you then I recommend this novel. This demonstrates passion and inspiration that not many people have. Since Cedric was African American he had a different life than if he was white. Going to Brown University he now had a white roommate who he became friends with closer to the end. You see how Cedric’s perspective of people who aren’t African American change because he develops an open mind to realize that you can be someone if you want to be; no matter the race you are. Not everyone will support you or respect you but if you put forth the effort, things are possible. Cedric transforms from a teenage boy with no friends to a man who is trying to find himself. If he didn’t get accepted into Brown then he wasn’t down trying. My favorite part of this novel was relating to him as person because if I didn’t get into the college of my dreams then I wasn’t going to just give up. I fought tooth and nail to get into Otterbein and it was the best decision of my life, just like Brown was Cedric’s.I believe the Author of this book, Ron Suskind wanted to show the life of someone else’s point of view. For me, this novel showed me how good of a life I have and how much society has changed. Cedric didn’t think he would get into Brown because of his race; but now private universities strive to have that diverse environment. I am very unbalanced when I try to decide what I think about A Hope in the Unseen because it had parts that inspired me and I could relate too, and parts where I dreaded reading the chapter because nothing exciting happened. The same issues go by, but his story gets more real. Being a college student you are able to relate yourself to other people and how they view their college experience. Cedric didn’t enjoy it at first, but now that’s his home. That’s the same way I feel about Otterbein, this is my home, this is the place I was meant to be. I suggest reading this novel if you want to be inspired, yet you can handle a boring chapter here and there. This is not the novel you want to read if you want action and if you are close-minded. Personally I find this novel to be compelling and relatable if you truly dig into it. Ron Suskind did a fantastic job of making me visual every part that is happening and making it come to life, as if you were Cedric yourself.
    • 4/5
      A Hope in the Unseen is a non-fiction novel about a young man named Lavar Cedric Jennings. This novel is written by Ron Suskind. Because Suskind does not show up in the story, it is truly and solely about Cedric’s life. This novel follows Cedric as he grows up and makes a transition from high school to college and beyond. Cedric attends Ballou High School and early on in the book Ballou is shown in a negative light. While describing the high school, Suskind mentions that it is “attempting a sort of academic triage that is in vogue at tough urban schools across the country”. The idea is to “save as many kids as you can by separating out top students early and putting the lion’s share of resources into boosting as many of them as possible to college”. And the rest are forgotten. We learn that Cedric is a part of this program and we see that he is trying to beat the odds and make it through school on top and hopefully go to a prestigious college. Cedric is growing up in a rough area in Washington D.C. with his single mother, Barbara Jennings. He does not have a good relationship with his father, due to his father’s on and off time spent in jail, and only connects with him a few times throughout the novel. Besides each other, faith is one of the main things that give Barbara and Cedric hope. Cedric quickly rises to the top of his class at Ballou but this only makes him different from all of the other students. His good grades make him the one that doesn’t fit in with everybody else. Because of this and his will to succeed in a school like Ballou, Cedric only has one friend: Latisha. Besides Barbara, Latisha is one of the only other people that realizes Cedric’s potential and knows that he has “something special”. During his summer break, Cedric is accepted into a ‘MITES (Minority Introduction to Engineering and Science)’ program at M.I.T. While participating in the program Cedric quickly realizes that he is not at the same level as most of the other students and is told that he is not “M.I.T. material” by one of the professors. This is heartbreaking for Cedric because he had his heart set on this school. Although he is set aback by this statement, he applies elsewhere and is accepted at Brown University. Despite complications with his roommate, Ron, Cedric makes the most of his first year at Brown University. He makes a few friends, attends parties and even goes on a date. At first these things seem a little out of character for Cedric. Cedric returns home to an eviction notice. Barbara had been short on money but had not said anything to Cedric about this. The church pulls through for them and helps pay the rent at the last minute before the eviction is completed. After a silent period between Cedric and his mother, they finally come to a consensus that Barbara needs to accept help from Cedric. It is time for him to do some of the giving.Suskind did an incredible job of writing this book so it is completely about Cedric’s life. He found a way to disappear from the novel and adopt Cedric’s viewpoint. He also did a fantastic job in describing Cedric and Barbara’s hardships in a way that makes the audience sympathetic. This book is very well written and the organization of it makes sense. Suskind wrote this novel hoping that it would give the audience an insight into the “ideal that racial distinctions can be bridged by shared understanding”. I believe that Suskind has achieved this notion. I am able to relate to Cedric in many ways and I would have never realized it if it weren’t for the things that I have read about in this book. I connected to some of Cedric’s emotions and feelings as well as his desire to succeed. Although many parts of this book were phenomenal I did have trouble getting into this novel. It is not a book that I would typically read and I felt like some parts of it were slow. But overall this was a good book that gave me a completely different perspective on things relating to life and school. If you were to pull away two things from this book it would be an appreciation of the life you have today and a new idea that you can succeed with anything if you put your mind to it. Although it may be hard to get into at first, I do recommend this novel. I think this novel can appeal to anyone and is relatable to different people in different ways. I give this novel four out of five stars.This book is similar to some of the other books that I have read in this class. In How Does it Feel to be a Problem by Moustafa Bayoumi, the characters describe obstacles they went through because they were considered different. This is similar to Cedric’s situation especially during his time at Ballou. He was different than most of the other students at Ballou because he took his acdemics seriously and wanted to succeed. Also, Cedric’s situation at home somewhat relates to Jeannette’s home situation in The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. In many instances both families struggled with money. This novel also closely relates to Running the Rift by Naomi Benaron because Cedric is stereotyped because of his background the same way that Jean Patrick is stereotyped for his Tutsi background. This novel can relate to many other novels.
    • 4/5
      Ron Suskind explores new territory starting in Washington, D.C. at Ballou High School by following a determined student, Cedric Jennings, on his journey to get out of his crime infested area and make something of his life. Just as the title suggests, Cedric’s transition to an Ivy League school could be described as a hope in the unseen. This nonfiction book touches on Cedric’s success but more importantly centers on his struggles to get where he is today. Suskind writes with the intention to be as unseen as possible. Having a background working as a Wall Street Journal reporter, Ron Suskind uses his skills to write this book by conducting interviews and observing Cedric’s journey first hand.Cedric Jennings was brought up in conditions that were not ideal. He lived in the poverty and crime stricken side of Washington D.C. with his mother, Barbra Jennings. Cedric’s father spent most of his life in and out of jail with very little contact with his son. Striving for academic success is not to be praised but instead looked down upon at Ballou. Being successful academically draws negative attention from other students and members in the community. Despite all odds going against him, Cedric strives to succeed at Ballou with Barbra’s support and guidance at his side. Much of his success is put back on his faith and commitment to his church. Cedric’s ambition to get into an Ivy League school is what kept him fighting. Eventually, after much determination and struggle Cedric gets accepted into Brown University where he will face his greatest transition. Brown points out the most obvious factors that distinguish Cedric from the rest, including not only his race but also his economic rank is society. While there are other African Americans at Brown, majority of them are from the middle or upper class. Cedric struggles to play catch up academically due to the fact that Ballou did not have the tools necessary to help him reach his full potential. Not only does Cedric struggle academically at Brown, he also struggles adjusting to the social life. People at college have trouble understanding his background, especially his roommate, Rob Burton. In many cases Cedric relies on the encouraging words from Barbra, Bishop Long from the church, and his special benefactor Donald Korb to help him be successful at Brown.Suskind successfully showed the hardships in each aspect of Cedric’s life. He observed his academic, social, economic, religious and racial hardships. It was to my surprise that this was not at all a perfect rise to the top book but, in fact, a truly realistic struggle to stay above the water. Ron Suskind not only took in the perspective of Cedric but one third of the book in cooperated interviews with both major and minor characters. To insure that the facts were portrayed accurately, Suskind had them verify what he said. It was easy to see that Suskind tried to make as little interference on Cedric’s transition that he could. They made an agreement in the beginning that he would not provide any advice to Cedric during this time. Ron Suskind saw the importance of Cedric finding his true identity on his own. Suskind did accomplish his purpose in showing how much of an impact poverty and race can have on the crucial years of a growing teenage boy. This book not only tells but also shows how difficult it is for people to “make it out” of their situation. Taylor Greer, from The Bean Trees had a similar struggle to not fall under the fate of most people from her local town. For her, the predestined fate was to end up a pregnant high school drop. She realized that was not the life she pictured for herself and had the determination to change her fate.The format of the book makes Cedric’s transition easy to follow. Writing about all sides of his life showed readers that Suskind was not trying to hide anything. In comparison to The End of Your Life Book Club, author Will Schwalbe, tried to take a more positive stance on a negative transition. This was due to the fact that his mother got diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and he chose to put less attention on the awful individual struggles she faced. Whereas, with A Hope in the Unseen, a positive transition was more centered on the struggles and hardships of getting there. Readers should gain more of understanding on what challenges people in poverty stricken areas face. They should also start to see that many times the power of the situation is overlooked, whereas people unconsciously put the blame on the individually personality. Also, the readers should develop respect for the people in the story who exposed themselves and allowed Suskind to get the facts. They shared their emotions, hardships, fear and failures all to contribute to Cedric’s story. Ron Suskind put countless hours into insuring Cedric’s story was told as if the reader was experiencing it themselves. The inclusion of the epilogue, author’s notes and afterword helped to provide a sense of closure for the readers.A Hope in the Unseen accurately and effectively shows the real struggles that Cedric encounters. It not only demonstrates his personal struggles but struggles for African Americans, people in the inner city, students trying to be on top academically and people trying to discover their identity. I would recommend this book, especially the revised and updated edition. This edition completes the book by following up on the characters, showing who he is as a writer and how he got the perspective he did. Ron Suskind truly gets the reader connected to the people on a personal level. None of this would have happened if it was not for all the people that were so open and willing to share their stories. A Hope in the Unseen leaves the reader completely captivated and all inspired.
    • 5/5
      A Hope in the Unseen is a nonfiction book written by Ron Suskind. It tells the phenomenal story of Cedric Jennings, a boy with all the odds against him, and how he perseveres through hard work and dedication, to be successful. The story starts when Cedric is 16 years old and a student at Ballou High School, one of the worst schools in Washington, D.C. and how he working to not only be the best students at the Ballou, but in the D.C. area where he knows the curriculum is much tougher. Cedric is an outcast at the Ballou because he wants to learn and do work, his only real friend is LaTisha, and in his free time he does extra assignments and work. Cedric’s dream is to get into a prestigious Ivy League school, and once he got accepted to the MIT MITES summer program, he set his sights on M.I.T.. Cedric is raised by his mother, due to his father being in jail for drugs. They are very poor and have been evicted many times and are now living in one of the worst D.C. neighborhoods. Cedric’s mother constantly reminds him to rely on his faith to help him, as she is a strong follower of Bishop Long and his congregation. Cedric’s mom, Barbara, had set her mind to dedicate her life to make his life as good as she can, and she never thinks of herself. At the MITES program, Cedric realizes he is way further behind than he thought, and he will have to put in five times more work than everyone just to understand a little of what they’re learning. By the end of the summer Cedric had improved and wasn’t struggling nearly as much, but he knew his test scores weren’t good enough to get into M.I.T. and he had to work harder. Cedric’s senior year he discovers a new college, Brown University, and this becomes his new goal. Cedric does indeed get accepted to Brown and in his mind this is all he can focus on, and knows this is his future and how he can get out of where he is now. At his graduation, Cedric gave a speech, where he finally dished back what everyone gave him, and it made him feel great that he could prove everyone wrong and achieve his dreams. Cedric gets a job that summer and when he spends some dough on nicer clothes he thought that he wouldn’t be looked at the same way by the white people at the mall, but it didn’t matter; it wasn’t what he was wearing that made the store owners skeptical of him, it was his skin color. When Cedric and Barbara arrive at Brown they feel out of place. It appeared as though everyone is very wealthy and their parents were also well educated. They quietly eat lunch and once Cedric has everything in his room they hug and say goodbye. At first Cedric and Rob (Cedric’s roommate), spoke they realized how different they are from each other. When Cedric got his meal card he decided to go with Rob to eat and they sit with a bunch of people on their floor. They all have things in common, but Cedric could not relate to them whatsoever. Eventually he connects to them through television shows and becomes some sort of a comic. This builds a tension between him and Rob because Rob does not watch television as much and he can’t put in any input in these lunch table discussions. Once school starts Cedric is back to his vigorous studying habits and decides to take his classes pass/fail because he knew he was struggling in them, but wanted to keep his good grades and to not start his collegiate career with C’s or D’s. Rob asks him many times to come to parties or hangout, but Cedric always declines and they grow further and further apart. After about a month Rob and Cedric argue and don’t like each other which makes Cedric one night wander his hall for someone else to hang out with. He finds Zayd and one thing they have in common is their taste in music. Zayd was really interested in having a black friend, but didn’t push Cedric with a bunch of questions and they became great friends. While this was happening Cedric’s father is inspired by his son, and decides to turn himself in to go to rehab for drugs use. Later in the year Cedric’s mom and her daughter visit Cedric for parent visit day and they decide to go further out from the main town to avoid all of the other parents and shop at a small mall. When they get back they decide to go to a very nice restaurant where they feel incredibly out of place. The food is expensive and only when the waitress mentions that she doesn’t really know what one of the items is do they feel relaxed and enjoy the dinner. Cedric is struggling with his writing because he doesn’t channel his experiences and solely uses those to write about anything, He goes to a writing center and learns tips on what can help him write better and it helps a little. Cedric and Rob continue to fight and eventually see a counselor which helps out somewhat. Cedric continues to get closer to Zayd and they hangout all the time. On Thanksgiving Cedric visits Dr. Korb, who is someone that supported Cedric’s journey to Brown financially and sends him monthly spending money on top of that. He feels out of place there and only when he leaves and Mrs. Korb tells him he’ll be fine, does he feel comforted. Cedric meets another professor who encourages him to try and focus on the now, instead of the difficulties he’s had to go through, so he can succeed at Brown. Cedric went home for winter break and one day he visited the Ballou. When he went there he saw that it looked more run down, and the teachers showed more despair and that they don’t care as much. When he is about to walk up the stairs to see his old favorite teacher he sees blood from a knife fight and decides then, he will never return to the Ballou. Before break ended Cedric and LaTisha went to church and after they got into an argument over the message it gave. What they argue about translates exactly towards them and after that they don’t really ever speak to each other again. When Cedric gets back Zayd finally asks Cedric a lot of questions dealing with his race and it hurts Cedric’s trust in him and they don’t talk to each other for awhile. Cedric now has a class where he goes to a local high school that is in a bad neighborhood. There he sees many similarities from the Ballou, and the teacher he is observing says something that caught him completely off guard. He said “I can tell the ones that will die when they leave here, when they leave this school.”, and it makes him wonder if all of his teachers thought that. While Cedric and Zayd are still fighting, him and Rob are starting to get along again. They go to breakfast together and even go to a party on Cedric’s birthday. Barbara is getting deeper and deeper into debt and if she doesn’t do something soon she could be evicted. Cedric and Zayd make up through a poem Cedric had written for a class and then it was Spring break. Cedric went home and it was pretty uneventful. When he got back he went on a date with Chiniqua, and they walked downtown and went into several stores and a movie. A few weeks later Cedric goes to a party with her and leaves after a short while and realizes he has changed and he is beginning to understand who he really is. By the end of the year he and Rob don’t like each other and he doesn’t even say goodbye to Rob on their last day. Right when Cedric gets home they are getting evicted and luckily the pastor pays the rent due to save their apartment. Cedric doesn’t talk to Barbara for awhile and he visits his father for little talk. Cedric ends up doing well at Brown and hangs out with more black students. His major is in applied math and his mother is paying off her loan to the pastor. Cedric is now a social worker in the D.C. area with a wife a two kids.Overall I really enjoyed a Hope in the Unseen. There wasn’t any slow parts in the story and you don’t even realize that Cedric is being observed and that this is all through what Ron Suskind wrote and observed. The book was well written and is clear and easy to follow. Suskind gets great input from the supporting characters as well and really executes in emphasizing the pain and struggles Cedric went through and how tough his journey was. From the aspect of the bad neighborhood and Cedric’s family being broken up and poor, this book really reminded me A Raisin in the Sun. Cedric reminded me a lot of Jean Patrick in Running the Rift with his determination to fulfill his dreams. They are both very hardworking and determined and will do whatever it takes to be successful. While both of them were dealing with people going against them, Jean Patrick’s challenges were more life threatening than Cedric’s. In the end of both of their stories they didn’t fulfill their initial dream, but they were successful and were living what was a dream to them.
    • 3/5
      A Hope in the Unseen by Ron Suskind is a nonfiction novel that takes place in the 1990’s and follows the life of Cedric Jennings over a three year period. The events that are recorded and portrayed by Suskind are some of the most pivotal experiences of Cedric’s life, but also the most challenging. Cedric and his mother Barbara live in a rough and impoverished section of Washington D.C., where it is not uncommon to hear gun shots on the street below or to see drug deals on every corner. The high school Cedric attends, Frank W. Ballou, is simply a contained form of the violence and poverty in which his community exists. Gangs run the school, and academics are not important to the students. Ballou’s dropout rate is more than fifty percent, with teachers struggling to encourage students to turn in work. Cedric is an honors student, but at Ballou that means you are bullied and ostracized. However, Cedric takes pride in his grades, always turning in assignments and asking his teachers for extra work. His goal is to make it to an Ivy League university and he wants to be able to compete with other applicants that have better educational opportunities than him. Cedric’s pride in his work, and focus on academics can sometimes come off as rude and snobby, making him even less popular and alone. Barbara wants her son to have a better life than she did and works herself to the grind to provide for him. However, Barbara and Cedric barely scrape by on her wages, and money is regularly extremely tight. Barbara raised Cedric to have a good attitude and a strong faith in God. They both attend church regularly, where Barbara continually gives what little money she has to “better” the church. All of Cedric’s hard work pays off when he is accepted into Brown University, an Ivy League school of his dreams. At the conclusion of his high school education, Cedric feels in between worlds, but anxious to move onto his life at Brown University. At Brown University, Cedric realizes how far behind academically he was and struggles to catch up, while encountering racial issues. Coming from an all-black area, Cedric is introduced to white culture and labors to find himself while staying true to who he is. The white boys that Cedric encounters act differently than what he is used to and he fights to understand their actions. These troubles cause Cedric to be guarded in his social life, but he eventually learns that he can accept others while continuing to be himself. Ron Suskind put an immense amount of effort and time into writing this book. The book was written from information that Suskind gathered from face to face and over the phone interviews. He took a great deal of time to interview all of the people involved in Cedric’s life, and even interviewed them multiple times. He wanted to make absolute sure that the events he recorded were accurate and truthful. Suskind also tried his best to make sure that he didn’t influence Cedric in any way. He never gave advice or offered his opinion on situations. Having no influence at all was impossible, as Suskind acknowledges in the Author’s Note, where he says that “all observers affect their subjects”. Suskind also uses a unique tactic, called internal voice, where he writes characters’ thoughts, emotions, and feelings, as well as their verbal communication. This expands the story beyond the surface and truly gives a look inside each person’s mindset. It also broadens the range in which the reader can grow from the story and take away advice for their own experiences. This nonfiction writing style differs from Anna Quindlen’s style in How Reading Changed my Life. However, both styles are successful in getting the point across in a way that encourages the reader. Another method that Ron Suskind used to make sure his work was accurate, was to follow Cedric throughout his days. Because of this, Suskind did not relying solely on others’ memories, but he was able to be a witness himself. This feat was made possible by the administrators of Ballou High School and Brown University allowing Suskind to be present during daily activities. This rendition of Cedric’s life would not have been possible if it had not been for his and his mother’s complete honesty. The majority of what is printed on these pages could be considered embarrassing or shameful. Many times Barbara’s money troubles, including evictions and immense debt, are spread out in the open, along with her sometimes unwise expense of what little she has. Cedric also experiences several situations that could be considered embarrassing or private, talking about sex, STD’s, sexual orientation, and racial differences. He also shows his true emotions, even when those emotions were selfish, rude, uncaring, or ignorant. However, all of these experiences and thoughts were recorded to give the reader a true picture of his life and to help educate others. This brutal honesty amazes me and prompts me to ask myself if I would do the same. The level of honesty used in the making of this literary work proves that Suskind put in a tremendous amount of work to ensure that each detail was 100 percent correct before it was printed. He also verified that each person incorporated into his book was willing to have their thoughts and actions printed for the public. With multiple interviews and hundreds of hours of work, Suskind nullifies any chance of what is printed being false. He gives a very accurate and true depiction of Cedric’s final high schools years and the beginning of his college career. I read this book for a college course that was centered on changes in life, particularly moving from high school to college. It fit very well with the subject of the course, however, it was not one of my favorite books. I would not recommend it for an extracurricular read. I did not appreciate Cedric’s attitude towards his peers, or his mother. It was hard for me to be on his side when he would continually push others away and refuse to ask for help. However, I would recommend it as an educational tool in learning what it is like to encounter great obstacles, to work hard to achieve your dreams, and to struggle racially. Like Running the Rift by Naomi Benaron, this books shows the depths of racial issues and the feelings that come along with those experiences. Suskind does an amazing job in showing an unbiased view of the interactions between blacks and whites, in that time period. He also shows the attitude educated whites had towards uneducated blacks that came from impoverished areas. Suskind did an incredible job in writing a book that shows truthful feelings, experiences, and realities of underprivileged and poverty stricken black adolescences. This book achieves in showing that hard work pays off in the end, even when all of the odds are stacked against you. Showing that it doesn’t matter where you come from, even if it is a drug run inner city, you can make it out. We have come a long way in the way that blacks and whites interact together and this book helps show that. However, the most important idea that I took away from Ron Suskind’s book was; you will always have struggles, but how you handle those struggles is what makes a difference in where you end up.
    • 4/5
      A Hope in the Unseen is about a man named Cedric Lavar Jennings. It started when he was in his junior year of Frank W. Ballou Senior High. The principal, Richard Washington, was becoming desperate because kids were scared about getting good grades. If you got good grades you were rewarded cash for it but people then knew that you were smart and they picked on you. It was so bad that kids were hazed for months after receiving there letters. So Cedric did not live in a nice neighborhood. He grows up with his mother, Barbara Jennings, who always trying her best to keep them alive. When she had hit rock bottom she found new hope with the lord, as did Cedric. His father, Cedric Gilliam, is in jail for multiple charges. He and Cedric Jr. have a rocky to nonexistent relationship. Cedric grew up with a lot of pride because of how well he is doing in school. With this pride many of his class mates have bullied him and talked bad about him.During his junior year, Cedric applied to MIT and in the end he got in. MIT was a summer long program that he was excited to be accepted to and saw this as a way to leave the place he grows up in. When he arrived it was not what he expected and he couldn’t handle it. By the end of the program he met some great people but was told not to continue with the program and to look at other low level schooling. Cedric left feeling like he failed himself. As the end of his senior year came around he decided to go to Brown University. The rest of the book is about his first year at Brown University and the struggles he faced in that first year.This book was released in 1998 and the epilogue released in 2005. This book was written by Ron Suskind when he met Cedric. This is a non-fiction book which means everything that is in the book actually happened. Ron Suskind met Cedric when he had to do an article for the Wall Street Journal. For two and half years while he wrote this book he was aiming to see America through Cedric’s eyes. What he found was that it was harder than he could have imagined. At the time it was hard to imagine a white guy trying, and succeeding, in understanding the life and mind of a black man. As he got deeper and deeper into the Cedric’s world, he was able to write the story so well people have asked if he was black. What Ron set out to do was to show that college can make or break you. Cedric, though he tired as hard as he could, almost broke from college. He didn’t know how to be prepared in college for all of his class. In his first semester he took all of his class pass or fail. This did not help him because he still struggled with his class. What he needed to learn was not to write down everything that the professor says. When it comes to how well Ron Suskind wrote this novel there are good and bad things that he did. Some of the great things that he did were when he wrote it you can barely tell that it was him writing it when you read it. He was able to dive into the lives of Cedric and everyone around him. Ron went to great lengths to make his book accurate to what really happen. He went to each person and showed them what had written about them. Then asked if that is what really happen and if it wasn’t he start all over on that part to get it right with what everyone was tell him. He even respected one girl’s wishes to not having her name in the book. So every time that she was in the story Ron changed her name so people would know who she was. Others he kept out there names entirely and just descried what they did but not enough for people could tell who they were. The time and effort he put in this story shows in every page he wrote. Even with all this work he put into this book there are some things that were not that well done. One would be all the jumping around he did from person to person. Half the chapters are not in Cedric’s POV even though he the book is about him. It was hard to keep up with who was who and which POV we were with, especially when we went from Cedric to his father then back again. Another thing that did not work was how he introduces the new POV. This has to do with the last thing that was wrong. Since he kept jumping from person to person it would have been nice if he gave us a warning that he was changing and who we were changing to. This probable happened because this is a non-fiction book so it was hard for him to say this is a new person because he wanted this to be authentic. People don’t think ‘hey my name is so and so and here is what is happening’. That just does not happen and if he wanted to be the cold hard truth he had to write exactly what everyone remembered happening. Did that make it harder for the reader, yes, but we have nothing but the truth in the book and that was worth it. When I read this book I gained a better understanding of how college works and what someone can do to do well. Cedric faced many troubles in school but in the end it all worked out. Another thing that I gained from this book was to see how hard life can truly be. Cedric’s life at home was and is so hard that I couldn’t begin to imagine what I would do in his place. For him to be able to just push thought all of it was every strong for him to do at such a young age. Though out the book you see Cedric trying to get away from his past but in the end he couldn’t forget that his past is the reason he has done all that he has done. From his church to the bad neighborhood he grow up in each struggle he went though has shaped him to the man that he is now. By the end you will see how he discovers who he truly is. Not a poor kid from a bad neighborhood or a Brown student looking to the stars, but both. Now the question is would I recommend this book to other people? The answer is yes, because despite its faults the story itself is a moving peace that should be read by everyone.
    • 5/5
      In Ron Suskind’s non fiction book, A Hope in the Unseen, Suskind shares the very true story of an African American boy growing up in a dangerous neighborhood in Washington D.C.. Cedric Lavar Jennings is a very intelligent and determined kid in a high school with an incredibly high dropout rate. He is bullied and persecuted for his efforts but continues to persevere for both himself and his mother. His ultimate goal in life is to graduate from high school and be accepted into, and attend, an Ivy League University. Cedric is motivated by his mother, who is just as determined as her son. Barbara Jennings works a low paying job everyday with hopes of having her son be the first in her family to get a college education. After a lot of hard work, Cedric manages to graduate from Ballou High School with honors, and even more importantly is accepted to Brown University. As Cedric prepares himself for the next chapter of his life, Suskind brings back relatable memories of the transition from childhood to adulthood. The rest of the book outlines Cedric’s adventures and struggles as an African American freshman at an Ivy League school.The author, Ron Suskind, is a journalist and a best-selling author. He is a Pulitzer Prize winning author for articles he wrote for The Wall Street Journal, where he worked from 1993 until 2000. A Hope in the Unseen started as a short article in The Wall Street Journal. Other novels Ron Suskind has written include; The Price of Loyalty, The One Percent Doctrine, The Way of the World, and Confidence Men. Personally I really enjoyed this book. The only complaints I have are about how much detail Suskind uses in the book. Suskind uses almost too much information and detail in certain parts of the book that do not always contribute to the story’s main themes. Some characters and their own personal stories seem unnecessary to the overall plot and just make the book longer. Also, at some points the book seems repetitious and tends to hit on the same struggles and problems, just in a different situation or with a different character. All these things are understandable, however, since this book is based off of Cedric’s real life experiences. In reality, trials have the tendency to reappear more than once in a person’s lifetime. Other than that I think Suskind does a good job of telling Cedric’s story in a way that really gets Cedric’s point of view across. The fact that Suskind did extensive research and interviews with Cedric over so many years really shows in the book. The book is very detailed and goes into not only Cedric’s thoughts and feelings, but the emotions of other characters as well. The accounts from other characters, while sometimes overbearing, usually add depth to the story and make it a lot more interesting. Their stories also help us understand what motivates Cedric in his journey and show us what kind of person he really is. From the outside, Cedric appears to be a proud, overly ambitious over achiever who seems to be too smart for his own good. From his thoughts and feelings, however, we realize his true intentions are pure. He is simply an ambitious kid wanting to prove his intelligence and make himself and his mother proud. He genuinely cares about his family and the friends he makes, though he has some trouble showing it. He has great faith, in God and in himself. His faith is what keeps him going when he is struggling the most. As his story progresses, Cedric becomes more comfortable in his own skin and accepting of his past and the world he lives in. He realizes he has outgrown his home and is ready for bigger and better things. He goes through the same range of emotions of any transitioning teenager and I found him and his story incredibly relatable. Suskind does a great job of portraying Cedric Jenning’s inspiring story in A Hope in the Unseen.
    • 5/5
      A Hope in the Unseen is an amazingly well-written, true story of an impoverished, but determined young man. The author, Ron Suskind was a journalist for The Wallstreet Journal in 1994 when he met Cedric Jennings, a black kid in “the most troubled and violent school in the blighted southeast corner of Washington D.C.” What started out as desire to write a newspaper article on a student who was overcoming unbelievable odds, turned into a two year project, as Suskind follows Cedric as he graduates high school and embarks on a degree from an Ivy League school. Cedric struggles against a myriad of problems that make innocent children grow-up way too fast. No environment in Cedric’s life is safe from danger or hostility being raised by a single mom, his father is in prison with his neighborhood overrun by gangs, drugs and violence. His living conditions are unstable; sometimes he is faced with trying to complete his homework in an apartment without heat and sometimes they do not even have an apartment. Cedric’s high school is cut throat complete with metal detectors, security guards, nonexistent textbooks, outdated supplies and unenthusiastic educators. At Frank W. Ballou High School, Cedric’s 4.02 grade point average leaves him a target among his classmates and teachers. His principle feels he is “too proud for his own good” and his fellow classmates despise his successes. Day in and day out, Cedric experiences painful isolation because of his fierce determination to succeed, his “headstrong, introspective and self-directed personality” and thick emotional armor he wears as a shield. Cedric is not unlike many of his fellow classmates in their commitment to survival, but his choices are determined by a strict moral compass, rooted in Christian faith that points him in the direction of college as his way out of his dysfunctional life. Cedric is blessedly protected and guided by a few key adults in his life, especially his pious and self-sacrificing mother, Barbara. She knows to keep Cedric tethered to a short leash built on “strong physical discipline and tight scheduling”, and she makes sure Cedric is always either at home, school or at church. Struggling against her own impoverished and abusive background, Barbara raises Cedric in their church, believing emphatically in moral orderliness and strict guidelines between right and wrong, which she passes on to Cedric. Another one of Cedric’s most influential allies is a teacher from his high school, Mr. Clarence Taylor, whose individual attention and mentoring help guide Cedric towards his ultimate goal of a prestigious, college education. Cedric’s acceptance into Brown University, is just the beginning of his very arduous journey. Cedric’s odyssey to Providence, Rhode Island is full of emotional upheavals and self-induced isolations. Cedric lacks an unbelievable amount of both social and scholarly skills, leaving him bursting at the seams. Cedric is so far behind his fellow classmates, that passing his classes requires an unimaginable amount of work. Cedric also faces an impossible struggle when trying to bridge the collective gap at Brown between race and prosperity. Cedric is a confused young man with every odd set against him and Suskind succeeds in taking his readers along through Cedric’s very real growing-pains. What makes Suskind’s writing so enrapturing is the portrayal of Cedric’s authentic experience. Suskind’s journalistic writing style allows him to unobtrusively observe Cedric and the diverse population of people in Cedric’s life. Unlike other popular fictional books on race, like Running the Rift, this book reads like a novel, but is entrenched in a factual portrayal of real people in a community’s experience fraught with despair and endurance. Suskind checks and re-checks his understanding of events as only a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist can do. Suskind tirelessly interviews and observes Cedric, and his associates to make sure his portrayal of Cedric’s life is accurate. At the end of their campaign, Suskind hands Cedric the manuscript and a red marker, allowing him to correct or omit any untrue portrayals of his story. This book fails to sugar-coat how very real and exquisitely unfair our country remains in dealing with racial and educational issues. Cedric’s struggle is far more difficult because of the inequality written into American laws pertaining to educational funding. It is exceedingly unfair and unjust to allow poor children in America to receive a sub-par education in comparison to their rich counterparts. Being a brilliant journalist, Suskind is able to highlight these very real issues while delicately portraying one young man’s personal journey of hope in a biased world. “The basic appeal of Cedric’s story was never rooted in his exceptionalism”, it is set by his very real appeal as a relatable, bungling, moody, young man who struggles with the consequences of his choices. Cedric’s unwavering dedication to his faith, family and studies sets him apart from his associates and makes this book, a fantastical read.
    • 4/5
      A Hope in the Unseen: An American Odyssey from the Inner City to the Ivy League is a nonfiction book written by Ron Suskind about an African American boy named Cedric Jennings and his struggles to succeed in the Ivy League. Cedric is a brilliant young man who, along with his hardworking mother Barbara, fights to get into the Ivy League and eventually make his way into Brown University. Cedric not only uses his sharp mind but his faith in God to get him through the gauntlet of hell that is being from a black urban background able to succeed in a white man’s world.His urban background and the immense poverty that comes with it teach the poor kid how to grow up too fast and the dangers of drug dealers, criminals, murders, etc. Among them is his own imprisoned father, Cedric Sr. Cedric is on rough terms with him, just like he is on rough terms with poverty. It begins affecting his grades after “Cedric started showing up late for school, often hungry and wearing mismatched clothes”, which gets him sent to an unfortunate high school called Ballou. His city education is a huge barrier standing in his way to not only achieve getting into the Ivy League but to remain there. While he certainly struggles to get into Brown University, he continues struggling to keep his grades up as his high school education falls far behind that of his classmates.I thought Ron Suskind did well on the book and gives the reader a full blown, accurate-as-can be gander into Cedric’s life. This book is a compilation of years of immensely thorough research and care for not only real experiences but care towards the real, live people inside this book. Every chapter has multiple meanings and lessons to be taught, not to mention the ever valuable stark realizations on class, poverty, race, abuse and dangerous urban life. Some of which the reader may never experience and has never experienced, and some of which the reader has experienced or is experiencing in his or her life. The book sets out to have you experience Cedric’s life in a third person view, helpless to stop the bad while silently cheering the good on the sidelines. Suskind puts the reader inside Cedric’s mind as well as the minds of other people he encounters throughout his life. In his desperation hope shall be either born or quelled, and more than a few times doubt upon doubt is thrust upon Cedric’s shoulders as he struggles with himself and the outside world. He wants to succeed, for deep down Cedric needs to realize “in [his] heart that [he’s] gonna make it—and that’s the key”. He doubts his identity, his intelligence, and his faith as people on the outside tear him down and he tears himself down internally. He is the highest judge of himself, and he has to decide whether or not to take pride in his achievement and the work he has done to accomplish them. The book is extremely developed and many of the people in the book become extremely complex. As the book carries on the reader may find his or herself connecting with Cedric on a high empathetic level because Suskind presents Cedric’s battles as raw and alive as they come. The reader watches Cedric grow up into a man, and other people surrounding his life grow with him as well. Piece by fragile piece the reader learns more and more about Cedric’s life, it nearly gets suspenseful as each chapter goes by and the bigger picture forms.Not everyone is immediately hooked on nonfiction, but I would recommend this book as the quality of values it presents is impeccable. Some a woven in, hidden in between the words and exchanges. Others are shown clear as day to the reader, saying ‘Hey! Look at this! This really happened and this isn’t right!’One thing I’ve noticed in relation to other books I’ve read is its emphasis on poverty, and how truly horrible it is. Debts, the constant stress, the penny pinching and the poor living conditions…How about not having heat during the winter? Not having enough to eat? What about lack of fresh clothing and protection from the weather? Threats of eviction and losing everything you have? Eviction is a threat that continuously rears its ugly head for Cedric. It wouldn’t be the first time he had his belongs picked apart by vultures. “Everything vanished, except maybe the psychological scar left on Cedric while he sat on the top stoop and cried, watching as kids divvied up his beloved He Man collection”. Who’s heart wouldn’t be struck if this happened to their little boy or girl?The poor are taken advantage of all the time, from debt collectors and renting contractors, to name a few. In The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie, Native Americans living on a reservation are so poor they can hardly get out of their bleak situations, and turn into alcoholics due to the hopelessness they feel. In The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver, The female protagonist tries to support a young girl and attempts to make something of her future while poverty hovers overhead. In A Hope in the Unseen, Cedric also has bad influences pressing on him due to poverty, and his mother struggles to support her family despite harboring a job.A Hope in the Unseen especially teaches how important it is not to give up, even when things look bleak, no matter how often a door slams in your face, anything is worth trying for if you want something enough to go for it. “He showed improvement up until the final day”. Doesn’t that say if one person tries enough and makes it, that the reader should do the same and carry such perseverance as well?
    • 4/5
      A Hope in the Unseen is a non-fiction book written by Ron Suskind that chronicles the last years of high school and first year of college of a young, African American teenager, Cedric Jennings. Cedric grew up and attended school in one of the most violent communities outside of Washington D.C. He was raised by a single mother and they both encountered financial troubles. However, Cedric was able to overcome the odds and, through hard work and determination, was accepted into Brown University. Cedric underwent a transition from being alone and successful at his high school to struggling to stay afloat and having to branch out of his comfort zone at Brown. The novel explores the various trials and tribulations that Cedric encounters, including several problems he faces that involve his race. This novel was very similar to another book I’ve read, The Haygoods of Columbus, by Wil Haygood. The book is a memoir, so the writing style is similar to A Hope in the Unseen because readers are aware of the thoughts and feelings of Wil. This book is also about a young African American boy growing up in a rougher part of town, in this case, Columbus, Ohio. The family also struggled financially and Wil’s siblings often got into trouble. Wil was the first person in his family to attend college and worked very hard growing up in an effort to be successful and to escape his difficult home life. He shares the same fighting spirit that Cedric has and they both are willing to do anything to accomplish their goals, while keeping their families close to their hearts. Both Haygood and Suskind present their stories as stories about overcoming the odds through hard work and determination. The book is written very well. Suskind accomplishes what few authors before him have been able to, and that is that he offers a glimpse into the thoughts of several of the characters, while keeping the book genuine and accurate to what actually happened. A Hope in the Unseen is unique because multiple people are interviewed, so some situations can be presented from viewpoints other than that of Cedric. It’s difficult to convey the inner thoughts and feelings of others through only interviews, but Suskind was very thorough in his writing process. Suskind was able to fulfill this role of an omniscient narrator through careful observation of the events that occurred in Cedric’s life and how they affected him, as well as those around him. He not only presented Cedric’s reactions to events that happened to him, but also Cedric’s most intimate thoughts and feelings about how something made him feel. One thing that Suskind did not accomplish was showing how Cedric and others reacted to the same situation. Often, readers were only shown one side of a situation because it was only told from one point of view. It would have been interesting to see the reasons behind the reactions of others based on reading about their thoughts during a situation. For example, we learn of Cedric’s first impressions of Rob before he has met him, yet we are not aware of what Rob’s preconceived notions of Cedric were. It would be interesting to see a situation played out two or three times, with each time being told from another person’s perspective. Readers can learn many things from this book. In reading about the disadvantages and obstacles that Cedric faced, readers can gain a better idea of the challenges that minorities in America face on a daily basis in several different aspects of life. They also learn what it is like to grow up in a violent area and the effect that it can have on children being raised in such an environment. Sometimes it can be difficult to understand the extent of problems within our society without a face to put on the problems. Cedric’s story provides a face to some of the problems that we are still facing and readers can gain a better sense of the problems that others face and can learn how to maybe help individuals like Cedric.All in all, I would recommend the book for others to read. Personally, I had a difficult time relating to Cedric due to different interests, experiences and different personality traits. However, the book offers a very interesting look into the life of someone growing up in a disadvantaged environment and how Cedric was able to succeed. Since the book was written over the period of several years, we as readers are able to fully experience the transformation that Cedric undergoes, which is a very interesting process to read about first-hand. This aspect makes the book very interesting and allows for a wider view of the country we live in and the different communities that make it up. Others should read this in order to get a new perspective on their own lives. The book demonstrates the positive outcomes that can occur when one perseveres and it conveys a hopeful message about the benefits and importance of never giving up, despite the many obstacles that one faces in life.
    • 4/5
      Ron Suskind’s book, A Hope in the Unseen, is a great book about an inner city kid beating the odds. Cedric Jennings is a teenage African-American boy that lives in inner city Washington D.C. He attends Ballou High School, one of the worst high schools in Washington D.C. Cedric is a very intelligent kid and excels in all of his classes. This makes him a target for all of the other kids. They believe he thinks he is better than all of them. He does somewhat believe he is better than them but he carries on with his business and tries not to bother anyone.Cedric has dreams of getting accepted into an Ivy League school. Everyone around him tells him it is not possible for an inner city African-American to achieve such a lofty goal. He does everything he possibly can to block them out and prove them all wrong. He does not want to end up like most kids from Ballou. They typically end up in prison or dead. Cedric wants to get out of the hood and make something of himself. Cedric ends up being accepted at an Ivy League school and heads off to college. He struggles with many things during his first months there. He does not really fit in with anyone. There are not many African-Americans there and the ones that are there, are from middle or upper class families. He cannot really find anyone that can relate to him and understand him. Coming from the inner city many people look at him differently and think he will not make it. Cedric eventually comes around and makes some friends. His journey has its ups and its downs but Cedric always finds a way to get things done. He has his struggles but he overcomes them. He does many things people told him he could never do.A Hope in the Unseen is a very good book. It tells Cedric Jennings’ story from his perspective and from other people’s perspective. Not only do you get inside Cedric’s head but you get inside other people’s heads as well. You get to see what other people really think of Cedric Jennings and how he is perceived by others. In most stories you get one perspective from the main character and you only get to see how that person is affected. In this story you get to see how Cedric is affected and how his actions affect the people around him. As a reader you get to see what life is really like for an inner city teenager. They are faced with many tough situations. If a kid starts selling drugs and doing everything the other kids are doing, then they never get out of there and will likely end up in jail or dead. If the kid does not indulge in those activities and tries to make something of themselves then he or she is criticized by their peers. People look at them like they think they are better than everyone. It is just sad that people have to deal with those kinds of things.The book also touches on what it is like to make the transition from high school to college. For Cedric it was a little more extreme. He was going from being in school with drug dealers and people that have little to no money, to being in school with people who have tons of money. Every kid goes through some struggles when going to college. They do not know who will be their friends or what to expect. Cedric really struggles with this in his first semester in college because there is no one he can really relate to. He eventually makes some friends and it shows that no matter how different you are, you can still find people to relate with in different ways. A Hope in the Unseen is a very good book that touches on many different topics. It explores the challenges an inner city African-American teenager faces when he or she is introduced to the world outside of their city. The book shows that no matter what the circumstances are, if a person has a goal they can reach it. It is a very inspirational story. Cedric had to deal with many things most people will never have to deal with in their entire life. He still managed to overcome those challenges and make something of himself. This is a book that I am glad to have read and I would recommend it to anyone.
    • 4/5
      A Hope in the Unseen by Ron Suskind is a nonfiction novel, which takes place in the 1990s and shares the challenging yet rewarding journey of a crucial period of Cedric Jennings’s life. In this narrative, Cedric is a highly intelligent young man, full of potential and a strong sense of faith. However, some may also add that he is dangerously boastful with his academic talent. He begins this odyssey as an honors student at Ballou. To his dismay, Ballou is not an ideal high school one would chose to attend. It is located in one of Washington, D.C’s most dangerous neighborhoods, and the dropout rate is continuously growing. Academic success is not praised here either. It is actually severely mocked. However, Cedric tries to tune out this negative environment and the fact that he barely has any friends by holding on to his motivating drive to excel in school. He spends a lot of his time doing extra assignments he has requested from his teachers to be able to compete with the other students applying to Ivy League colleges as well and to keep the hope alive that he can make it to a top notch college. Fortunately, his mom, Barbara, helps to keep the hope from fading through her encouraging words. This book uses very uncommon yet efficient writing styles to describe Cedric’s last two years of high school and his first rigorous year as a college student at Brown University. Not many authors dare to write narrative nonfiction works in a way in which they use someone else's point of view to present the story. Nevertheless, Suskind successfully incorporated this technique throughout the novel by choosing to disappear from the story completely and adopting the perspectives of Cedric and the other characters. Although Suskind spent a great deal of time with Cedric, studying him and recording his innermost thoughts, he did not give Cedric any advice. He just listened to Cedric and questioned him. This allowed him to have a lesser impact on the storyline, creating a more authentic experience. He also used a method known as internal voice, in which he held numerous interviews with characters, both major and minor, to ask them to recall their thoughts and feelings about a situation or person. Moustafa Bayoumi took a similar approach while writing How Does it Feel to Be a Problem: Being Young and Arab in America. However, unlike Suskind, he only interviewed the major characters and did not question them immediately after the occurrence. Furthermore, Ron Suskind often felt the need to meet back up with characters just to ensure the accuracy of what he had written, concerning both events and their feelings. Through the use of these techniques, it made it easier for me as a reader to understand and empathize with these real life characters experiencing factual incidents. While writing this book, Ron Suskind never forgets that he is a reporter who is entitled to tell the facts without watering down or sugarcoating the details. As Maya Angelou incorporates many scenes in her novel I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings that many would probably be hesitant to reveal about his or her life, so does Ron Suskind write of incidents that would have been embarrassing for some people to expose. Of course he was only able to do this with the permission of the characters, but just hearing of this has personally amazed me and has caused me to develop a newfound admiration for him because actually being the one to broadcast these unpleasant personal incidents of people who he now calls friend in order to reveal hardships and adversaries dealt with by the African American society is not an easy decision to follow through with. More importantly, I have established a reverence toward the characters, especially Cedric and Barbara, because opening the doors of their home to an unfamiliar author, entrusting him with their inmost thoughts and feelings, and approving to the spreading of some of these happenings is not an easy agreement to make. However, because of the honesty found in the book, a sense of both authenticity and reality inhabits the pages.Even though Ron Suskind tried to have no influence on Cedric while he was going through this phase of his life, it is practically impossible to do so. He even said it himself that to say there was no effect would be shortsighted; all observers affect their subjects. They have spent countless hours together – on the phone and face to face, probably to the point where Suskind could read Cedric like a book. For this reason, I would have liked for him to gently touch on his own perspective – to give detail about his relationship with Cedric even if just a little bit. It may have been a little challenging to do so, writing about himself and asking Cedric to reveal his thoughts about him, but I believe it would have enhanced the book because at the end of the day, I think that's what readers want to know – more about their relationship. It could show readers a side of Ron Suskind that they wouldn't be able to discern through his writing style. The time and energy Ron Suskind has put in this book is outstanding, and the hard work definitely shines through his finished product. He set out to obtain an understanding of a new culture, disproving the idea of the impossibility of comprehending the African American culture while of a different background, and he did just that. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone. The fashion of his writing really enhances the story and makes it easier to identify with the characters. However, I would have really appreciated it if he gave readers a taste of his personal experience of living life with Cedric. Nevertheless, the book still depicts a genuine example of life as an African American male trying to move up in society. It encourages readers to have hope in better circumstances against all odds – including the voices that try to talk people out of fighting the good fight of faith. Lastly, I would have to say that both the novel itself and the successful results of Ron Suskind’s work prove that achievement comes with productiveness and the making of sacrifices.
    • 5/5
      This book always makes me weep. Ron Suskind gracefully addresses race, class, and affirmative action in his poignant, inspiring book about the struggles of one inner-city kid to overcome his environment and fulfill his educational potential.
    • 4/5
      Cedric Jennings was a student at Ballou, one of Washington D.C.'s roughest inner-city schools, where kids rarely graduated and crime was rampant. A bright young man, he never fit in to such an environment; he stuck with what he knew--his faith, his mother, math, music--and he placed his sights beyond Ballou. He set the impressive goal of getting to the Ivy League.Cedric did accomplish his goal, getting accepted to Brown University, but he soon found that he still faced many of the same issues--loneliness, feeling out-of-place, insecurity, etc. And, he was no longer the brightest student in the classroom.Ron Suskind, winner of a Pulitzer for his articles about Cedric in the Wall Street Journal, followed the young man for almost four years to capture this journey. What results is a very honest account of life at the bottom, the hope for the future and the realities of accomplishing mighty goals. Most importantly, Cedric's story shows that the most important step is to become comfortable in one's own skin.Suskind does not present a glossed-over account of any person (or institution, for that matter). Instead, he offers insight, based on hundreds of interviews, into the motivations and emotions that guide each of the people in the story. Readers from varying racial, economic and social perspectives are offered this insight to gain a better understanding of the barriers our youth often face as they try to reach their goals.