Customer Reviews

Grace After Midnight: A Memoir

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Felicia was born in Baltimore to a drug-addicted mother and a drug-dealing father who she never really knew. She was placed in the foster home of Mr. and Mrs. Pearson in East Baltimore, considered to be roughest section in the city. The Pearsons, who were old enough to be her grandparents, raised Felicia in a Christian home. She was a smart child who observed everything, including the open and often secret world of drug dealers. Even with all the attention she received from the Pearsons, Felicia was simply drawn to the glitter and hustle of the streets. Felicia "Snoop" Pearson tells her story in Grace After Midnight.

Despite what you may have heard or read about Felicia Pearson, Grace After Midnight sets the record set. She tells her story in her own words for anyone that wants to read it. It is not a pretty picture but she owned it and she did not and does not have to apologize for the way her life turned out. This is a story of family, curiosity, drugs, death, murder, incarceration, grace, encouragement, despair, hope and love. Just when she was about to return to a life on the streets, fate stepped in and she was asked to come to the set of "The Wire" for an audition.

Being from Baltimore and having worked in the foster care department, this reader has seen firsthand many children like Felicia who have had to overcome so much. I applaud her for the courage to tell her story. Grace After Midnight is recommended for everyone, particularly for troubled youth who are looking for a light of encouragement.

Reviewed by: Priscilla C. Johnson
APOOO BookClub

Felicia "Snoop" Pearson, from HBO's drama The Wire, gives it to you straight with no chaser in Grace After Midnight. From birth she had a spirit of survival. Death almost consumed her as the drugs her mother ingested caused her to be born a "three-pound, cross-eyed crack baby," she described. That was the first time she escaped death and it was apparent she had escaped it many times though it filled the streets of her East Baltimore roots. From simply observing her surroundings with eight year-old eyes, she was able to invade the drug world with a wisdom that usually came from playing the game and age. She had mentors who recognized her street talents and taught her the ropes. She had mentors who prayed for her and wanted her to leave the streets alone. She also had foster parents who accepted her for what she was, whatever she was. The wild and wicked ways of East Baltimore was where she felt natural and alive. She received a healthy dose of reality when she was sent to prison for murder. While there, the game changed. She learned about trials and tribulations. She learned to appreciate life beyond bars while still incarcerated. She even learned more lessons about death as it snuck up on her and threatened her sanity. It was in the penitentiary that she also learned about love and grace.

Felicia Pearson's story is engaging and real. She does not want readers to feel sorry for her and I applaud her for that. She wants to tell her story because it is a story of hope for souls lost in street life; especially children's souls. Written in a matter-of-fact way, she simply explains the mindset of a child that is not quite lost but falls prey to what feels right even though it is wrong; gangster life. Her demeanor in a bar is what got her recognized for the role of "Snoop" in The Wire but it is not your everyday rise to fame. Yet, she offers hope. She offers a glimpse into someone's life who was born to die but did not. She triumphed over what appeared to be her destiny and wanted to give others a small glimpse into what can happen, even if not very often. The more I read, the more I wanted. The conversational tone of the book was very comforting and easy to read. The language was simple yet complex because it stirred my emotions. Something about Pearson's eyes on the cover made me want to know her. I recommend Grace After Midnight to readers who enjoy autobiographies, memoirs, urban fiction fans, and teenagers who think street life is the only life.

Reviewed by Darnetta Frazier
APOOO BookClub

This is one of the most honest and titillating autobiographies that I have read in a long time. Now - who doesn't love The Wire, but especially what Snoop brings to the show? If Stephen King calls you the most frightening villain ever to appear in a television series, you are definitely doing something right.

Here, we learn about the man behind the character (LOL) and the life that she endured to get to where she is today - from the rough streets of Baltimore to 4 years in jail, then back to the streets after playing it straight works against her because of her conviction, to the meeting with Michael K. Williams that was divine timing and made her the star she is today.

It is not a pretty story; at times it is awful, but she made it. And she can speak her truth and be proud. That's what I loved most about this book, she is unapologetic about who she is, HOW she is and where she has come from. She doesn't glorify her past, and she was able to save herself through GRACE before it was too late.

This is a quick, riveting and rewarding read that makes you almost hear her reading it to you and I HIGHLY recommend it. Kudos to the co-author's subtlety that makes this book a knockout!!!

I have ordered many thing from amazon and have been a customer for a long time. I read a lot so I am always trying to encourage my son to read for entertainment and finally I found a book that I think has caught his attention. This book is about one of his favorite stars on a show that we all watch. Finally I did it he read the complete book from front to back. and he told me Mom this is the first book I have finished. and he is a sophomore in college. I feel proud I have accomplish my mission. Hope he continues to read for fun. I read the book in two days and it was very good.

is simply amazing. I think the memoir was a great read! It's like she is just having a regular conversation. Basically in drawn out details about how she was raised, how she was on the streets, how close she was to her foster parents and her mentors, her time in prison, and what happened after her release.

From her stories from the streets, to the ladies stories in "Grandmas House" this book definitely is a must read.

It is amazing how someone so young can go through such adversity and come out a winner.

From a Crack Baby, and a Banger to a star in her one right..

Snoop's story is not so new in this world we live in today but, it is just the way that it was told that made it feel like you were there, listening to her speak.

I pick up the book this morning and finished it with a strong sense of who she really is this evening.

Snoop, I will remember your title and keep it in my heart when my days are low. I'll remember to think "Grace after "MY" Midnight"

I wanted to be one of the first to read Felicia Pearson book GRACE AFTER MIDNIGHT, because I am such a fan of the show THE WIRE. There are a bunch of us at work who discuss the show after each episode and since the show isn't back on yet I wanted to be able to talk about Snoops book. She was already one of my favorite characters but now that I know what her life has been like I have nothing but respect for her. She tells it truthfully without any excuses or feeling sorry for herself. I read it and felt satisfied that sometimes for kids like Snoop everything does turn out good and I am so happy for her.

Where the boundary lines of art and life intersect stands Snoop. A mind-grabbing account for even the unfamiliar reader becomes riveting to a fan of "THE WIRE". Watching the show I had the feeling Snoop the actress was too authentic to have been strictly portraying a fictional character born in the pages of a script. Her auto-bio piece confirmed what I'd suspected.
Thinking as a fan, I was somewhat disappointed by the books length - who could blame me for wanting to know more? However, the quality of the storytelling, done in the understated manner of many a street player that's secure in who they are and what they've done, gives depth to the words. Making length a non-issue when all is said and done.
Snoop being "discovered" by Michael K. Williams/OMAR the way she was is the ultimate testimony to the philosophy that fate is only the beginning of good fortune. Being in the right place at the right time isn't enough. When the window of opportunity opens you also have to be prepared to jump through -- something Felicia Pearson has done both feet first!
Like a fiend in "Hamsterdam" that picked up the needle, once I started the book I couldn't put it down. Finished it up in one sitting on a Saturday morning. If you decide to pick up this book, don't have plans for a while; you'll be like "Old-Face Andre" or "Little Kevin" were in one of those abandoned buildings... hemmed up with no hope of getting free.
One!

This was a really quick and interesting read. It really does inspire, especially those who have not had an easy life (meaning a life of crime or drugs). We see, through Snoop's story that there is light at the end of the tunnel.

GRACE AFTER MIDNIGHT is the striking autobiography of Felicia "Snoop" Pearson, star of the critically acclaimed HBO series, The Wire. In the short but poignant memoir written with David Ritz, Snoop recants her upbringing in the tough streets of Baltimore, the place that both raised and almost killed her.

Born with cross-eyes and crack in her system thanks to a drug-addicted mother, Snoop had much to overcome in the first moments of her life. She was no more than three pounds at birth, but surpassed the grim expectations placed on her. After years in foster care, she was taken in by a loving older couple, Cora and Levi Pearson. They offered her a good home with Christian values and worked to make sure Snoop had a better life.

By her pre-teens, Snoop had her first taste as runner whose quiet strength took her far in the game. At 12 years old, she was witnessing murders, drug deals, shakedowns, and way too much for a girl her age. One of her mentors, a man known as "Uncle," took Snoop under his wing and tried to get her abandon her dangerous behavior, but it was too little too late when Snoop ended in the Jessup State Penitentiary at 14 for murder.

While there she turned her life around, gaining a new appreciation for doing the right thing. With Uncle's help, she left there feeling like she could do anything - and quickly found her good intentions weren't worth much. That is, until she met Michael K. Williams from The Wire, landing the role of a lifetime with no acting experience.

The rest is history.

Snoop's story is compelling and heart wrenching. You see the innocence of a child wanting her mother and a heart growing cold from rejection. You also glimpse a woman truly turning her life around, trying to obtain the grace after midnight she found in prison. And you also witness a woman true to her sexuality, being openly gay all her life.

For that, she should be applauded.