Customer Reviews

Patches of Grey

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Lionel Johnson vowed to take care of his family at all costs. Working laborious jobs and giving up his aspirations has not only weakened his resolve but has transformed him into a bitter man. A bitter man whose cynical views, although due to the harsh hand life has dealt him, are turning him into a tyrant and demoralizing his entire household. Lionel is desperate to spare his offspring the pain he's endured so he's laying out life's bitter truths in black and white. But life isn't always so clear cut; it's the shades of grey that his family needs to learn about the most. Over the time period the novel encases they'll learn just that.

Lionel's wrath always seems to be bestowing mostly upon his eldest son Tony. Tony is finishing up his senior year of high school and views college as not only as an escape from his domineering father, but as a way to escape his impoverished neighborhood. Lionel views Tony's dream of higher education as a snub towards himself and feels that Tony looks down on him for being nothing more than a laborer. Not only does Lionel think Tony is ashamed of who he is as a father, he thinks Tony is ashamed of being black, especially when Tony starts dating a Caucasian girl.

Tony's character is the primary voice throughout most of the novel. Tony provides a very poignant voice as he deals with feelings of resentment towards his father and also reels from the stigma associated with dating outside of his race. The younger brother, C.J., has no desire to escape the projects in which the Johnson family resides. He foolishly wants to rule them, which he thinks he can by do by joining a gang. Tanya, the middle child, finds her chastity is at stake while she ponders just how far she's willing to go for her first love. While Caren, the matriarch of the Johnson family, has to deal with her husband's fragile ego, which elevates to violent proportions once the company he works for goes on strike and he can no longer provide for his family.

Author Roy Pickering does an outstanding job allowing readers into the minds of each character within the Johnson household. Not only effectively capturing their hopes and dreams, but their fears as well. Fears that sometimes push them into making foolish decisions and even while doing so Mr. Pickering's writing style will cause readers to empathize with the characters' actions, no matter how wrong. But greater than that, PATCHES OF GREY will actually convince readers there are more ways to deal with life's struggles than just black or white, compromise can be found just within the patches of grey.

Reviewed by Delonya Conyers
for RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

Patches of Grey follows the difficulties of the Johnson family as they struggle to find answers in life. The mother Caren is an optimistic woman, "There are no struggles too difficult for God's love to guide us through." Her husband, Lionel, is embittered and can't find a job to support his family, "He chooses to complain about what hasn't been handed to him." Their 15 year old son CJ lives for his gang, then tries to escape. Their daughter is confused and feels pressure from her boyfriend.
But the story centers around their son Tony. Tony is intelligent with a bright future. He is college bound. He falls in love with a caucasian girl, Janet, whose parents are racists with ridiculous stereotpical ideas of African-Americans. The story revolves around their relationship and the problems they experience as an inter-racial couple.
Pickering's descriptions and metaphors are vivid. "Wide spreading ripples can reach calm waters far removed from where a stone has been tossed."
Pickering asks the question, "When searching for your worth on this planet, is it love or is it power that will accomplish this for you?"
The language is often gritty and not for the faint-hearted.

Patches of Grey

With "Patches of Grey," Roy L. Pickering's debut novel, coming of age is as difficult as it's always been - except, rather than rant against the alienating conformity and rampant consumerism of earlier generations, the characters must choose a path between soul-crushing disappointments and the violence of surviving in "the projects" and the hopes and dreams youthful confidence and lack of experience generate when one looks outside one's own neighborhood.

And always, because of birth, because of melanin pigmentation in the skin, that dasher of dreams and killer of youth, prejudice lurks to slap hard those who aspire and seems to make life easy for those who don't have to.

This novel could introduce readers early to the essence of one of life's truisms - that living is difficult enough, especially for teenagers, without others trying to make it more difficult for anyone.

Each generation absorbs as much as rejects the teachings of its parents - good and bad - and chooses to find truth lying somewhere in the "Patches of Grey." Or dies believing itself to be whatever it's labeled as.

I recommend this book. In fact, I'd recommend it be on every junior or senior level high school reading list. Maybe earlier. Maybe it can catch the next generation before it gets to the stage of some of the characters in the book.

This is a great story. Poor kid from wrong side of the tracks wants a better life. With so many distractions and opposing forces around him, what will he become? The interracial concept is done well. I enjoyed this story. It was entertaining and the writing was vivid. I'll add that I was distracted by errors in the book. There were quite a few more than I would have liked to see. If you don't let that get in the way, you'll enjoy Patches of Grey.

"Patches of Grey" is a narrative that focuses on the lives of members of the Johnson family. Tony is the oldest son with dreams of college and a white picket fence life. He desires to escape from his current life of abuse and poverty. However, his younger brother, CJ, believes that Tony is also seeking to escape who he is....a black man in America. Lionel, Tony's father, knows firsthand what it feels like to have dreams denied. He wants his son to not have to face the same fate, so he uses abuse as a way to make Tony see the truth. At the center of Lionel's pain is his own failed relationship with his brother, Manny, who decided to live the dream by turning his back on his family. Twenty-five years later, Manny realizes that his dream has become a nightmare.

"Patches of Grey" is a novel about truth, love, family and sacrifice. It is also about the choices that many black men face daily as they try to survive in America. From gang violence to dating across the color lines, Pickering weaves a complex story of hope, forgiveness, love and dreams deferred. I found myself wondering how I would have reacted in certain situations as the author introduced them in the novel. It also made me question some of the truths I have accepted regarding race relations in America.

Although this novel was an advance reader copy (ARC), I was very distracted by the editing issues. There were pages with "white-out" that had words handwritten in. Also, there were many pages where editing had been missed completely. In the beginning, I was so distracted by these issues that I found it very difficult to even read the book. However, the plot began to pick up and so I was able to overlook those errors enough to read the book. "Patches of Grey" would easily be a 5-star read if the editing issues had been better addressed. I would advise the author in the future to not submit an advanced copy in this state. Errors are expected in an ARC, or uncorrected proof, but the condition of this ARC simply proved too distracting.

Reviewed by: Flashette

The semi closely knit Johnson family have their share of problems inside and out of their New York apartment.

Lionel,the father,is a hard working man that does all he can to make sure the family is taken care of.

Caren,the mother,holds down the household and works part time to help make ends meet.

CJ,the youngest of three,has taken on a outside family with the Kaos Krew gang.

Tanya,the only girl,thinks she's found love in a boy who only breaks her heart.

Tony,the oldest,is the daydreamer that sees far beyond the goings on in the dwellings around him...he see his future and the girl he wants to be in it.

Being a excellent student,Tony,has dreams of going to college and making something of himself.Along with that dream comes the one with Janet,the caucasian girl he has drooled over forever,being a part of his future.Tony doesn't see Black or White...he sees Patches of Grey.

Mr.Pickering did a beautiful job on how whites view Blacks...Blacks view whites...Blacks view Blacks....Black+White=Grey,we are given a glimpse of this Grey,all Tony sees until he clears his eyes and mind from the dream he is in...but we are given a a vivid picture that Black is Black and white is white...blending does not come about easily.A good job was done on racism...when when its claimed to be none,it still hangs in the shadows...Grey.

4.25 rating.

Patches of Grey by Roy L. Pickering Jr. take us through the daily lives and struggles of the Johnson family. They reside in the projects in the Bronx, NY. Lionel and Caren Johnson is a married couple with three children. Tonya is the youngest and who is a hopeless romantic riding the wave of discovering her first love. C.J is living chaotic and carefree as he is a member of the local gang in his neighborhood and is always down to rep his set.

Tony is the oldest and the story is often told through his eyes is dealing with his own life of dealing with the realities of being in an interracial relationship, aspiring to leave the nest and attend college to one day hopefully become a doctor, but is constantly attacked by his father for striving for better. This book was to me indeed a five story read, it was refreshing to see the author tell a story of a family and the importance of it.

Patches of Grey tells a tale of a family that are struggling to stay together and the daily trials and tribulations with just trying to stay afloat to make ends meet. There are highs as well as lows, while Tony is the main character, each family member plays a significant part in this story with a realistic storyline as well as an obvious message from the author that kept me reading from beginning to end.

What I liked most about this book is how it touched on pain, hurt, and interracial relationship within a family but more so how Caren (the mother) was determined to keep her family together. I didn't like how Lionel treated Tony and Caren but the emotion that was felt is what over made this story so good. Good Job Roy L. Pickering Jr.

Reviewed by Kendra Littleton for Writer's Vibe

Pickering has created a phenomenal book concerning life and relationships. Focusing on a family in the Bronx, Pickering's characters and relationships paint a vivid portrait of the struggles many young men and women currently face in the United States, be it racism, gang violence, family disagreements, or poverty. Tony, the main character, struggles throughout the entire novel trying to make a place for himself in the world, all the while his father berates him for attempting to pull himself up by his bootstraps. Tony's father is a man scorned, harboring a grudge against the White man and all others who have money, including his brother, a doctor. C.J. is a lost young man finding solace in his hatred of others through his gang violence, and Tanya is experience love/infatuation for the first time. Together, this family lives a rocky existence and they struggle to make ends meet and deal with disappointment after disappointment.

I was blown away by the vivid depictions within this novel. Pickering's writing is beautiful and poignant, causing the reader to become one with the characters, feeling their pain, their anger, and their hurt. I loved the set up of the novel; even though the main focus is on Tony, the novel follows each family member throughout the course of the year, creating in-depth characterization. This is a touching novel of relationships and realizations as a family must ultimately band together, or completely fall apart, in these hard times. I am extremely impressed by this novel and highly recommend it to all YA and above--the overall message rings true to everyone, regardless of race or economic station in life, and I think it's a wonderful read. Four and a half stars.

When I finished reading the first chapter I knew this Author was more than just someone who wanted to write. Roy L. Pickering, Jr. is a Storyteller. "Patches of Grey" is a deeply complex tale with authentic characters whose personalities are strong and well developed. The story surrounds the Johnson family and each member's life is examined from their own perspective. Their individual struggles are woven together to illustrate a compelling tale of how each of them chooses to deal with adversity.

Worlds collide within the pages of this book. Thoughts are challenged. Dreams are shattered. Hearts are broken. The author explores what shattered dreams do to the Soul's of Men. From the man who seemed to have it all, to the man who never achieved his goals, and the one who fights to keep hope alive, and the fall of one who barely got to dream at all.

"Patches of Grey" takes the reader on a remarkable journey into the depths of despair with the Johnson family as each of them battle to overcome their reality, which threatens to overwhelm them to the point of no return. "Patches" has depth, meaning, and purpose with powerful themes, some subtle and others blatantly obvious. Mr. Pickering writes with a voice strong enough to one day propel him into the category with the likes of other great Novelists such as: Richard Wright [Native Son, Black Boy], Ralph Ellison [Invisible Man], and John A. Williams [The Man Who Cried I AM].

I believe with persistence this writer will one day be represented by a mainstream Publisher with celebrated works on shelves in Bookstores, in Libraries, and even as required reading in African-American Literature courses in some Colleges. Many aspiring writers could learn much about how to develop a character by studying the members of the Johnson family. By the end of the book, there is no gap in the fabric of the man's mind, heart, or spirit that the author has not uncovered. I closed the book having experienced that turbulent year in the life of this family.

I'm going to place Mr. Pickering's book "Patches of Grey" on my book shelf right next to the African-American Greats that had paved the way in Literature, and left the path clear and plain for him to follow in their footsteps.

___
Dianne Rosena Jones is the Editor of African-American Literature at BellaOnline, a Transformational Life Coach, Inspirational Speaker, Co-Host of "Becoming Who I AM" on BlogTalk Radio, and Author of the award-winning "Tragic Treasures: Discovering Spoils of War in the Midst of Tragedy" voted "BEST INSPIRATIONAL BOOK OF THE YEAR [2010]."

In a story that at times reminded me of Matty Rich's Straight Out of Brooklyn, Roy L. Pickering, Jr. deftly weaves a coming of age tale of Tony Johnson in Patches of Grey. And while Pickering could have taken the easy way out and strictly focused on one main character, he takes the time to tell not only Tony's story, but that of his siblings and parents as well, each as fascinating as Tony's.

Tony is every inner city youth that dreams of making it out, except he doesn't plan to do it by being a rapper or athlete. He dreams of going to college. Normally you would expect one's parents to be supportive of that kind of dream, but his father's defeatist attitude weighs heavily upon Tony's shoulders.

Even as Tony walks the straight and narrow, his younger brother CJ is on the path to destruction. Completely unimpressed with school and what it offers, CJ belongs to a gang. Somewhere in the middle is their sister Tanya. At the age of 16, she's obsessed with losing her virginity.

I was intrigued with the fact that the younger brother was the wayward one. In most books, the older sibling's bad habits lead to the younger sibling's desire to do better. So it was interesting to see the roles reversed. On the other hand, it could have been that the parents had more time and were less stressed when raising Tony (and his sister Tanya) and by the time CJ came along, he was left to raise himself.

It's also interesting to note the differences between the relationships that their father shared with Tanya and the boys. While Tony's relationship with his father is antagonistic at best, Tanya's relationship with him had me wondering if I was reading about a completely different man. No, really. It took me a minute to realize that this belligerent man who berated his oldest child was the same man that coddled his daughter and offered her words of encouragement.

Through Lionel's back story, the reader finds out why he's so hard on his son and how he came to be in the situation he's in. Undoubtedly, his perceived failures shape the way that he treats Tony. And while he believes that he's preparing him for the real world and teaching him life lessons, he's slowly losing his son's respect and love.

Aptly named Patches of Grey, Pickering proves that, indeed, life is rarely black or white.

What did you like about this book?
As I mentioned before, I love that everyone in the family has a story to tell and is actually allowed to tell it.

What didn't you like about this book?
Not a thing. My biggest regret is that it took me so long to move it up on my "to be read" list.

What could the author do to improve this book?
Can't think of a thing.