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    An Invisible Thread: A Young Reader's Edition
    An Invisible Thread: A Young Reader's Edition
    An Invisible Thread: A Young Reader's Edition
    Audiobook5 hours

    An Invisible Thread: A Young Reader's Edition

    Written by Laura Schroff and Alex Tresniowski

    Narrated by Laura Schroff and Emily Sutton-Smith

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    From New York Times bestselling authors Laura Schroff and Alex Tresniowski comes the young listeners' edition of an unbelievable memoir about an unlikely friendship that forever changed the lives of a busy sales executive and a hungry eleven-year-old boy.

    On one rainy afternoon, on a crowded New York City street corner, eleven-year-old Maurice met Laura. Maurice asked Laura for spare change because he was hungry, and something made Laura stop and ask Maurice if she could take him to lunch.

    Maurice and Laura went to lunch together, and also bought ice cream cones and played video games. It was the beginning of an unlikely and magical friendship that changed both of their lives forever.

    An Invisible Thread is the true story of the bond between an eleven-year-old boy and a busy sales executive; a heartwarming journey of hope, kindness, adventure, and love-and the power of fate to help us find our way.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateJun 28, 2019
    ISBN9781400128143
    An Invisible Thread: A Young Reader's Edition

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    Reviews for An Invisible Thread

    4/5

    255 ratings24 reviews

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    • 3/5
      This is a quick read -- for a memoir it flows smoothly and doesn't get bogged down in detail that is only meaningful to the teller. Laura Schroff recounts how she met and mentored Maurice Mazyck and ultimately saved him from the streets of NYC. As an 11-yr old panhandler, Maurice was well on his way to tough times when he literally crossed Laura's path -- and kudos to her, she stopped and paid attention and acted on the impulse to take him out for a meal rather than just hand over money. This was the beginning of a meaningful lifelong friendship that has come to fruition in the happiness and success Maurice has had in raising his own family. While the homelife Maurice was raised in was tragic, full of drugs and prison and adults who had no use for children, Schroff doesn't belabor this too much -- some of it she didn't even know until after the fact. It is hard to know if the dividing line for Maurice rising above is due to her influence or to his own resilience. It is probably a combination of both, though he seems to give her much of the credit and to her credit, she is quite humble about it. It is hopeful to watch the trajectory of Maurice's overcoming the odds, and also to witness the determination and risk Schroff took in pursuing the friendship. "We all want relationships that are healthy and resolved, and sometimes that simply doesn't happen. But the beauty of life is that inside these disappointments are hidden the most miraculous of blessings. What we lose and what might have been pales against what we have." (184) Schroff's own background with an alcoholic, abusive father helped the two find common ground, or at least increased her empathy quotient. She says "For many of these doomed people in Maurice's life, there was simply no escape from the heavy, burdensome weight of the past. That burden is something I am sure many, many people understand, and it is something I understand pretty well too. I know that struggling against the vicious undertow of inherited sadness -- the ever-present pull of family history -- can be a lifelong battle that is never won, only endured. (207) Urban poverty and race is such a multi-faceted problem that it seems defeatist to even begin to untangle it. But Schroff had the guts to jump in and make a difference for one and that has made a difference for many. Inspiring.
    • 5/5
      Wonderfully uplifting true story.
    • 5/5
      Although Maurice’s circumstances are heartbreaking, I took comfort in the fact that he always felt loved by his family and especially by his Grandma and mom. I would be careful who I gave this book to because I know that super sensitive students would be haunted by the idea of a child going days without food. I think it’s an important story to share however and one that needs to be available.
    • 4/5
      This tale of an unexpected friendship unfolds like an intimate journal, revealing the deep and conflicting thoughts and feelings of a single white career woman named Laura Schroff in New York City who forms a friendship with a panhandling young boy named Maurice.
      Though the boy is desperately lonely and emotionally outcast from society, the reader discovers that Maurice and Laura have more in common than appearances show. This story stays with the reader because of its underlying, subtle but profound message about an invisible thread.
    • 5/5
      In a world where we all stay in our comfort zone, this woman and this boy stepped out if theirs to befriend each other. For everyone who has ever passed a homeless person without giving it a second thought, this is a must read. It is a book of hope about how our choices and actions really can change the world, at least for one person.
    • 5/5
      A very inspiring and sweet story.
    • 4/5
      Junior League Author's Luncheon--Good non-fiction read. NYC unlikely friendship between woman executive and street-urchin
    • 5/5
      Story of how Laura became a friend and mentor to a panhandler she passed on a New York street one day and their lives through the years.As a "Big Sister" to a (now) middle school boy, I enjoyed the story (but both lives are far different than either of ours!). I was surprised how she really didn't put her foot down at all with her fiance with regard to her friend or that she went for periods of time with out seeing him. I was glad to know she did make such a difference in his life.
    • 3/5
      Pretty good book. Good narrator for audiobook. Nothing stellar, just a story about a woman from a highly dysfunctional family trying to help an inner city kid survive. The proselytizing was a bit over the top... my how this woman thinks a g-d is watching over every little thing... but the story itself is interesting and watching this kid grow up with some structure is nice. It's the ol' white person makes good story, but it is still nice how it turned out. Easy read.
    • 4/5
      An Invisible Thread tells of the life-long friendship between a busy sales executive and a disadvantaged young boy, and how both of their lives were changed by what began as one small gesture of kindness.Stopping was never part of the plan...She was a successful ad sales rep in Manhattan. He was a homeless, eleven-year-old panhandler on the street. He asked for spare change; she kept walking. But then something stopped her in her tracks, and she went back. And she continued to go back, again and again. They met up nearly every week for years and built an unexpected, life-changing friendship that has today spanned almost three decades.Whatever made me notice him on that street corner so many years ago is clearly something that cannot be extinguished, no matter how relentless the forces aligned against it. Some may call it spirit. Some may call it heart. It drew me to him, as if we were bound by some invisible, unbreakable thread. And whatever it is, it binds us still.
    • 4/5
      Inspiring in its truth and its impact. Bravo for doing it; bravo for telling it. Now I'm off to perform some random act of kindness because, after reading this, what else can I do?
    • 4/5
      Laura Schroff recounts the story of the relationship with an 11 year old panhandler that changed her life. When she first walked by Maurice and he said he was hungry and asked for spare change, her first inclination was to walk on by. But thinking about how he said he was hungry made her turn back and invite him to a nearby McDonalds. After sharing a meal she couldn't get him off of her mind and sought him out again and soon their lunch dates became a regular weekly occurrence. Laura shares how she gradually learned more about Maurice's troubled life and barely functioning family environment, and how he also learned about her and her family and friends. Despite some bumps along they way, they have managed to stay in touch even to this day.A touching tale, if somewhat simply told. Those looking for inspiration from a true life story will find plenty of it here.
    • 2/5
      This book really disappointed me. It was way too much about the author's family and not enough about her relationship with Maurice. Also...SPOILER..I was so angry when her husband would not allow Maurice into their home and she so readily went along. He was good enough to take to McDonalds but not good enough to bring into her home. Even after her own family accepted Maurice with open arms, she accepted this behavior from her own husband! Infuriating. I know their relationship helped Maurice, but the author talking about her childhood ad nauseam got to me. While alcohol and domestic violence are horrible, it paled in comparison to the horror that Maurice lived through. I found that the letter from Maurice that closed the book the best part of the book.
    • 4/5
      As an educator I found this story inspiring and heartwarming as well as heartbreaking at times. Laura's relationship with Maurice is so unique and powerful. It really makes you think about the influence you can have on other people and how you can help steer kids in the right direction.
    • 5/5
      Loved it! Amazing story,you feel like Laura is talking to you as a friend and it is such a moving story of love, loss, life and 2 people destined to be friends. I highly recommend it.
    • 5/5
      No review because I read it for the 2013 Just For Fun Reading Challenge
    • 2/5
      Something so non - credible about this entire book. Plus poorly structured (re. chronology).. Aggrevations galore.
    • 1/5
      Poorly written. Story about author, Laura Schroff, ad executive for USA Today. She is asked for change by a young boy, whose name is Maurice. She keeps walking. She turns back and takes him to McDonalds instead. They develop a friendship and she changes his life for the better.Easy to read, but too much about the author and not enough about the young man.
    • 3/5
      The story of Laura and an 11 year old boy, Maurice, she met on the streets of NYC while he was panhandling.She takes him for lunch one day, then every Monday, then forms a relationship with him that change both their lives.
    • 4/5
      “An Invisible Thread” by Laura Schroff and Alex Tresniowski is a true story of a successful ad sales rep, Laura Schroff, and a homeless 11 year old panhandler, Maurice, who by chance for an unlikely friendship in the heart of Manhattan.11 year old Maurice was asking for money because he was hungry. Laura Schroff walked right on by without noticing him. Then, for no reason, she stops, turns around and offers to take Maurice to McDonalds for some food. Thus began what would become a weekly tradition between Maurice and Laura.Reading about Maurice was heartbreaking. It is hard to imagine that a child would have to live like he did with a drug addicted parents and extended family, never knowing where he was going to sleep or when he was going to eat. Maurice has grown up learning never to trust anyone. Until he meets Laura and takes a chance. Laura is brutally honest about herself and Maurice in this book. She grew up in a household with an alcoholic father. She became a successful ad sales rep despite not having gone to college. Although she was successful, she was missing something in her life. Turns out, it was Maurice that she was missing.This is a feel good story about a chance encounter, learning to trust, and opening your heart. Laura and Maurice are incredible people who changed each other’s lives for the better.
    • 4/5
      I began this book expecting a conceited tale of Laura Schroff "giving back," or admonishment of the reader for civic ills or even a promulgation that racial oppression still exist. Instead, I found this book to be written so that it was engaging from the first page to the epilogue without any dressing down or politicking. Ms. Schroff alternates between her story of befriending a pre-teen panhandler and her broken home of a stereotypical Catholic family. Ms. Schroff never attempted to equate or draw the slightest parallel between Maurice, who grew up in a series of drug dens operated by his mother, and her home wracked by alcoholism. Being a cynic, I found myself waiting for the altruistic braggadocio for the first two or three chapters, yet the way she shares their narratives (his and hers), I don't believe she is publishing a written account of her life with Maurice for any other reason than inspiration. I would also estimate she is proud of Maurice, like a mother, of his accomplishments. This book reads rather quickly and was difficult to put down. Not written in a grandiloquent fashion, An Invisible Thread, is easy to understand and would be suitable for a young adult. With Ms. Schroff's honest and undecorated view of abject poverty from an "outsider's" point-of-view, free of blame, the book exemplifies kindness from a heartfelt level where nothing is sought in return. True charity.
    • 4/5
      One day Laura Schroff, a busy ad exec, was walking down a street and barely registered a small boy ask her "Excuse me, lady, do you have any spare change?" But for some reason, a reason she couldn't name then or now, she turned around half way across the street, nearly getting hit by the impatient Manhattan drivers, went back to the boy and offered to take him to lunch at McDonalds. In that moment a friendship was born that changed both of their lives forever. They began an unlikely friendship that has lasted 25 years and is still going strong. This is an amazing story of love and hope and how it can change lives, not just for two people, but potentially for an entire generation. This is a rags to riches story of the soul and the heart, and I think everyone should read it--it could help you see the world very, very differently.
    • 5/5
      I have never read a book that had me crying after the first few pages and then smiling after the last page was read. Just as the title says it's about a busy executive and a small boy out on the streets begging for money. She walks by him as if he doesn't exist but then for some unknown reason goes back and there starts this beautiful relationship between the two. I read this book in not even a day because I simply could not put it down. The bond and the love just jumps off the pages. I am so thankful that I was able to experience this book. And thank you Laura and Maurice for sharing your story.
    • 3/5
      I read an advance reader's e-copy of this. This was a touching memoir about the unexpected and unlooked for connection between a successful ad saleswoman, Laura Schroff, and a poor young panhandler, Maurice. Something about the 11 year old boy belatedly caught Schroff's attention as she was halfway in the street after doing the usual New Yorker disregard of panhandlers. She backed up, offered to buy him a sandwich at McDonalds, and they developed an odd sort of friendship for the next few years. The book was a quick and easy read, albeit emotionally wrenching in parts. It will have a wide appeal to readers in a moderate fasion, I think.Schroff clearly has a warm and generous heart, continuing to nurture the boy (despite her friends' worry about potential misunderstandins or trouble) via weekly meals, holidays meals and celebrations, gifts of essential clothing and personal items, and a steady presence in his life as an adult who was neither violent nor on drugs. But she made it a point to not try and replace the boy's own mother, who while deeply troubled nonetheless loved her son. Maurice is a bit of a cipher in the book; we get a clear picture of his home life with poverty, drug addicts and violence, but not his own internal life. Of course it isn't Maurice's memoir, but I was left wondering what his voice would have been like. Some letters from Maurice were included, but they sounded oddly duplicative of Schroff's narrated details about their relationship. Perhaps he isn't a big writer. The most gut wrenching parts of the book were Schroff's own remembrances of her Jekyll and Hyde-like sometimes sweet, alcoholic and violent father, who created instability and fear in her home. It illustrated how she might have developed the empathy and understanding she displayed with Maurice in the memoir.