The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates (One World Essentials) Paperback – January 11, 2011

About five weeks ago, I attended a "Building Leaders" conference in Richmond, where I was able to hear Wes Moore speak about his book and the major lessons he has learned in his lifetime. Wes was one of the most charismatic and intriguing speakers I have ever seen, so it was not surprising that I was simply unable to put his book down. Throughout the entire book, I was consistently engaged in his thought-provoking anecdotes and moving stories of the crime and violence prevalent in inner-city neighborhoods. Most importantly, though, he caused me to step back and re-evaluate the way I view the privileges I have and opportunities I am presented with every day.The way that "The Other Wes Moore" is set up is for the purpose of slowly building up to the final and crucial points he wishes to make, which I will mention later on. He opens up in his introduction discussing the basis for his book: how he came from a poor, rough background living on the streets of Baltimore and the Bronx, but with the support of his mother and others advocating for a brighter future for him, he eventually graduated from Valley Forge military academy, John Hopkins University and graduate school at Oxford University with the prestigious acknowledgement as a Rhodes Scholar and became a second lieutenant in the Army in Afghanistan. In contrast, there was another Wes Moore who similarly grew up not far from where he used to live in Baltimore and lived a troubled teenage life, but ended up getting in deeper trouble and serving a life sentence in prison for robbery and first-degree murder charges. The rest of the book was spent switching back and forth between both Weses, telling stories about their childhoods and the major determining events that led up to their fates--one as a prisoner, and one as a successful journalist, father, and social figure. He ended the book with discussing how to pinpoint where both Weses split in their fork in the road and managed to end up in completely different places--this part is what troubled me the most--and closed with a "Call to Action" section, with lists of organizations and ways to help better the future of our country's youth.Moore's conclusion on what exactly split both Weses' fates was not what the reader wants to hear, and he probably realizes that. He gave a similar answer at both the conference and in his book: that he just doesn't know. At that point, I had to pause and set down my Kindle out of utter shock. How is it that we can't figure out a single driving force that leads to success or failure? And how can we sit back and allow this world of drug, crime, and violence to continue without knowing how to guide it in the right direction? Now, I will give the author this: he breaks down the complex system of the drug activity in cities for us from the runners, hitters, and suppliers, to the game of hiding from parents and "jakes" (police), to the big money and high-profile, violent deals. It becomes obvious how easy it is to get sucked into, and seemingly impossible to get out of. But the author did, so why couldn't the other Wes Moore?Now I won't ruin the book, because it is so worth reading that you need to experience the deep stories and important narratives from reading it first-hand. However, I need to make sure that you realize the true point to his book before delving into it, which I have noticed many other reviews have confused. It is not to tell us exactly how to move the youth towards success, point out the single deciding moment in which both men's paths diverged, or for the author to indulge on his success and scorn the other Wes Moore's decisions/ultimate failure. Instead, Wes Moore longs to make readers thankful for our privileges as Americans, learn to seize onto every opportunity we are presented with and not let one pass by because it could be the biggest improvement of our future, and to highlight ways that we can control ours and others' fates as self-motivators and mentors. Wes talks again and again about mentors, family, and friends he had in life that helped guided him in the right direction. He also notes the way he regained control over his future, instead of letting his low expectations or his environment determine it. As a reader, all you have to do is remember these important themes Wes includes in this book so that you enter with an open mindset and a heart ready to accept a powerful message.

i love this book it really caotures the reality of how things where during this time. my daughter also read it, shes in 9th grade and had an assignemnt for it

This book brought me to tears in the first hundred pages. The author was talking about the Wes Moore who ended up in jail, and how one of Wes’s friends had a father, and how it was so unusual for a little boy in that neighborhood to have a father. That’s just so sad to think about, how there are whole communities where being from a broken family is the norm.Throughout this book, we see how this lack of family support helped the “Rhodes Scholar Wes Moore” to succeed, and how absent this family support, “criminal Wes Moore” started down the wrong path. Although it’s not entirely accurate to say the “criminal Wes Moore” didn’t have family support, his big brother was present in his life and encouraged him to stay in school and not get involved with the drugs business. Unfortunately, the older brother sold drugs himself, and as the most positive influence in Wes’s life, Wes emulated his brother and wound up following in his footsteps.Coming from a background of relative wealth, growing up in a safe neighborhood with an in-tact family and every academic advantage, it’s unnerving to think that perhaps what separates me from the criminals in jail is partially beyond my control. Yes, it was his choice to pursue a life of crime, but if a life of drugs, violence, and poverty was all I had been exposed to, who knows if I would still have chosen to pursue a life of academia rather than a life of crime?The corollary to this is that the book also demonstrates how surrounding a child with positive role models can help to ensure that the child matures into a moral and successful adult. (Of course, there’s no guarantee that a good upbringing will yield a morally upstanding adult, just as a bad upbringing doesn’t guarantee a life of crime.) But the book definitely emphasizes the influence that a parent can have on a child’s life, and the difference that a good role model can make in a troubled child’s life.I guess this review ended up being more about my reaction to the book than the actual book. The book is engaging, though I can certainly think of nonfiction books that are more engaging. What sets this apart from a lot of books is that it was written with a larger purpose than to entertain. It was written to prompt thought and discussion on how to keep children from falling between the cracks (the author says this himself at the beginning of the book, though admittedly I’m paraphrasing). Given that motive, I’d say this book was a success, because he’s certainly prompted me to take a deeper look at things.