Ron Suskind tells the story of Cedric Jennings, an African- American teenager who is ferociously determined to study his way out of the inner city and get his piece of the American dream. Suskind follows Jennings from his early years in high school through his first year at Brown University.

Suskind won the Pulitzer Prize for the pair of articles that formed the seed of this book.

"Ron Suskind takes us on an unforgettable, peculiarly American journey-a journey which exposes the fault lines of race and class, and yet gives one reason for hope. This is a tale of fierce power-and one which stayed with me long after finishing the book."—Alex Kotlowitz, author of There Are No Children Here and The Other Side of the River

"Suskind uses his reporter skills brilliantly, portraying Cedric's outer and inner life and making an eloquent though unstated plea for affirmative action. Essential reading that provides some small hope for our social ills."—Library Journal (starred review)

"The drama of the story is in the mediations Cedric learns to make between the inherited and the chosen, yet 'unseen' parts of his life."—Kirkus Reviews

TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Something to Push Against; Don't Let Them Hurt Your Children; Rise and Shine; Skin Deep; To Him Who Endureth; The Pretender; Good-bye to Yesterday; Fierce Intimacies; Bill Payers on Parade; A Bursting Heart; Back Home; Let the Colors Run; A Place Up Ahead; Meeting the Man

 
Visit Ron Suskind's website

 
Ron Suskind is a staff writer for the Wall Street Journal. In 1995, he won the Pulitzer Prize in Feature Writing for a two-part series about the high-school years of Cedric Jennings. Suskind and his family live in Washington, D.C.