The author calls this story a creative non-fiction. What is that? The events and timelines are based upon real-life experiences, but have sometimes been adjusted or compressed in deference to the larger story. It’s based on real people but many of the names and features have been changed. The conversations are meant to convey and capture the spirit, but should not be considered exact.
When You’re Ready by Kareem Rosser will put you through a kaleidoscope of emotions. It’s a love story, but not just the significant other kind. It’s a mother’s love. It’s family love. It’s learning to love yourself. And when everything goes wrong, to love again. It feels coming of age. When you’re young and think you have all the time in the world. Kareem is fully vulnerable and doesn’t hold anything back. He shares growing up in the Bottom, one of the most impoverished parts of Philadelphia. A neighborhood full of addicts, like his own family. A place where gun violence is the normal. A mindset that loss is always around the corner, causing panic attacks.
Through a program called Work to Ride, Kareem is able to get out and change the whole trajectory of his life. He does barn chores in exchange for riding and polo lessons. He begins getting better grades and goes to a military academy for middle and high school. He later becomes the first person in his family to graduate college and a nationally ranked polo player.
Along the way, he meets Lee Lee, a gifted equestrian. She hails from a completely different world of privilege in a wealthy suburb of Philadelphia. They date long distance in college and are finally back together again where it all started. Everything is going perfect until Kareem gets a phone call that Lee Lee had a horse accident and he needs to come to the hospital right away.
I don’t want to spoil the rest; I can’t recommend this enough!
Thought provoking. Captivating. Honest. Full of love.
Comments