This book is about two kids both named Wes Moore and grew up blocks away from one another. Both grew up with no father figure, had a difficult childhood, hung out on the street corners, and ran into to trouble with the law. Although throughout all this trouble the author Wes Moore came out very successful. He was a Rhodes Scholar, decorated veteran, White House fellow, and a business leader whereas the other Wes Moore is convicted of murder and serving a life sentence in jail. It is a fascinating experience to live down the street from someone who shares the same exact name as you and live very similar lives but takes very different paths in life. As a young child all you want to do is fit in and have friends. Some children are very affected …show more content…
“Wes now had more money in his pocket than he’d ever had before, which kept him outfitted in new clothe. “I was impressed. I had never seen anything like that before. I had never seen a man, a peer, demand that much respect from his people. I had seen Shea demand respect in the neighborhood, but this was different. This was real respect, the kind you can’t beat or scare out of people. That is when I started to understand that I was in a different environment.”. The author Wes was beginning to realize that the respect in the neighborhood was nothing compared to the respect you could receive here. Wes was beginning to realize that the path he was taking in life was not good and his mom sent him here for a reason and because she loves him and wants the best for him. His surroundings was affecting his behavior and he was beginning to realize that. The people in the environment may also have a big effect on kids and their actions. “My eyes watered as i sat in the backseat of the cruiser, watching out the window as the two cops picked Shea up off the ground and led him toward the backseat with me. Shea winked at me as …show more content…
He thinks it’s cool. Now that he is sitting in the back of the squad car crying he realizes that this is somewhere he doesn’t want to be. “Wes had no intention of going to school. He was supposed to meet Woody later-they were going to skip school with some friends, stay at Wes’s house, and have a cookout… the boys all hopped on their bikes and rode to the corner store, where they picked up some Mad Dog 20/20 and rolling papers and ,within a half hour, the party was getting started”. The other Wes was beginning to skip school and didn't care at all and it didn't bother him. Hanging with his friends in the neighborhood and having fun seemed more important to him than school. Smoking weed and drinking was his party and school and getting an education was the last thing on his mind. Lastly wanting to provide for you family. Both Wes Moore were poor and lived in poor communities. Nobody around them were wealthy in any type way or form. The only way people made good money around their neighborhood was dealing. Tony knew better. Tony had now spent over a decade dealing drugs and knew how much money could be made in the game. He also knew there was no way for someone as young as Wes to make that kind of money