The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates

If you enjoy reading biographies of contemporary people, you might also enjoy The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, by William Kamkwamba, or Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different, by Karen Blumenthal, or Aung San Suu Kyi, by Sherry O'Keefe.

The author Wes Moore had a challenging childhood. His father died when he was very young, his mom had to work multiple jobs to support their family after his death, and they had to live in neighborhoods plagued with drugs and gangs.

Moore survived his turbulent youth, however, and went on to become a decorated war veteran, college graduate, and Rhodes scholar. It was when he was in South Africa on his Rhodes fellowship that his mother told him about another young man, about his age, and from his home town, who had just been arrested for robbing a jewelry store; the robbers had killed a security guard. This young man’s name was also Wes Moore, and this Wes Moore was convicted to a life sentence in prison.

The shock that there could be another person, with his identical name, growing up in a very similar situation who ended up in such a different place made the author want to understand the other Wes Moore, and how their lives had diverged so significantly. This is the biography and autobiography of the two Wes Moores.

If you ever thought your life was written out in the stars, or that you were dealt a bad hand at birth due various reasons, reading this book should change your mind. You can be anything or anyone you want to be, with people around you who believe in you. That might be the most important part, that not only is your fate not written in stone at birth, but you have to listen to the role models around you in order to succeed. You might have to leave your present neighborhood because too many people do not have an interest in seeing you succeed. As a matter of fact, to the contrary, they might want to see you fail because "misery loves company." The same idea of writing your own ticket with your own self-adopted mentors is also described in the autobiography, I Beat the Odds by Michael Oher. It is a fabulous book written by an amazingly reflective young man. These two books should be required high school reading (especially in inner city or rural schools) along with the 7 Habits of Highly Successful Teens, and The Four Agreements.

I love being read two, hearing the story out loud enhances my journey

the message of opportunity or the lack of opportunity. This could be so many people's story

I love the book, it is full of life lessons that constantly remind me of how fortunate I am and how anyone's fate can easily be altered.

...and in their connection to our own individual truth and reality. This is a MUST READ for all who realize or hope to realize, there is purpose in the air we breathe and actions we take or don't take. Your life and those of one's around you stand to never be the same.

Addictive story. The narration in the author's own voice made it especially engaging. The epilogue and call to action at the end brought me to tears.

A must read if you have youth in your family and community that mean something in your life. Adults can make a difference in a child's life by only being there for our young people. There is a great need to offer hope and guidance to those who follow us.

This book shows how we have so many choices in life. For this to be Wes' first book it was great.

A must-read for anyone working or considering working with at-risk youth. it's clear to me why their lives ended up so drastically different one had positive mentors the other didn't.

This book invoked all kinds of emotions in me, anger at the circumstances, guilt for not doing more to help the plight of black people, sadness for the outcome of Wes' s life. It also motivated me to do better, to be better. Thanks.