Violence. That’s all C.J ever knew as a child. From the brutal bullying by boys at school to his father’s fiery fists of rage, his life was nothing short of a nightmare. When his abusive father and traumatized mother divorced, C.J shed his childhood nickname and began searching for the real Chris. It is at this time he meets Danielle, the girl next door. With an instant attraction, their worlds collided and erupted into a magnificent world of love and trust from the start. Danielle became a beacon of hope that guided Chris through the most challenging years of his life, a time when he was discovering who he was and who he wanted to be. However, Chris ended up moving to Michigan, ripping him away from Danielle just as their young love blossomed. Can Chris move past the trauma and distance to win Danielle?

Author C.J. Hudson thrusts the reader into his world of pain and belittlement by his father and bullies at school. The scenes of abuse were hard to get through, and I absolutely hated C.J.’s father for how he treated him, but that also shows the author’s writing is descriptive and moving. This impassioned story reads like a journal written by the author to his sons about his childhood life and how he met their mother. I was able to connect with the author, and I enjoyed being able to read about his thoughts. I understood his reasoning for not liking certain things like his real name or something as minute as oatmeal.

C.J.’s and Danielle’s relationship made me smile because she loved him for who he was. Reading about how Bob, C.J.’s uncle, treated him was heartwarming and, I must say, the best part of the author’s memoir. It brought a smile to my face when C.J. began to feel the real love and get the right parental guidance. I don’t know why I was surprised by the ending of the author’s memoir, maybe because a part of me was rooting for him to win Danielle back.

Destiny Lives on Fairhaven Street is an inspirational memoir of trials and triumphs. Readers will follow as the author finds the strength to survive the things that life throws at him and watch as he tries to build a better life and legacy for his own sons.

Pages: 258 | ASIN B0BHTP7FH9

Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2022/11/14/destiny-lives-on-fairhaven-street-2/