Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 I loved walking home on Christmas Eve after a long day of shining shoes and going to the store for the neighbors. I was so happy to be home, and I was excited to give my parents their new Christmas tree. #2 I loved that wallet. I filled out the address card, and then I put my dollars in it, just like men do. I went out that night and handed the conductor a dollar. I was so excited that I didn't eat dinner. #3 I wanted to tell my mother that I was at Doctor Jackson's house, and that he liked me. I told her that he would help me learn to read, and that when it got too cold to study in my house, I could come by his house. But that wasn't true. I played all day in a vacant lot. #4 I was ten years old when I got kicked in the face. It was Saturday afternoon, my big hustling day. I was shining this white woman's shoes when a man jumped off his bar stool and called me a nigger bastard.