Customer Reviews

Red Light Green Light

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The effects of 9/11 were devastating to most Americans. For some Vietnam vets, they were transported back in time to a place where they relived the horrors they witnessed in the Vietnam jungle. Families mourned loved ones who were lost and remained undiscovered. For 45 year-old, recovering crack addict, Craig Stevens, it brought up memories of his first love, Juliet Sumpter (Gazelle). It also made his day-to-day life an agonizing struggle between choosing the pipe or sobriety. In Margaret Johnson Hodge's newest novel, Red Light/ Green Light, she vividly describes Craig's perils in the aftermath of September 11, 2001.

When 9/11 happened, Craig had 42 days of sobriety under his belt and was well on his way to recovery. When he is told about the Twin Towers falling, his first thoughts were of Gazelle. It did not matter that he had not seen her in 20 years, he needed to find out if she was okay and so he sets out to find her. He winds up in Hempstead at the home of her grandmother, who is also awaiting news of Gazelle's fate. After a few days of no news, Gazelle's grandmother sets off to find her. Craig remains in Hempstead hoping for both of them to return. In Hempstead, Craig is determined to remain clean for Gazelle. He does not want her to see him as he last left her, stealing all their belongings, wild-eyed, crazed and on a drug-induced binge. He tries to remain strong, but temptation by those who mean him no good, a little money and the smell of a crack addict on the bus is too much and his fragile recovery shatters. Disappointing all who were cheering for him to succeed, Craig is back on the streets, searching for that Nirvana. But, there were those who just would not give up on him, and when he comes down from the high, they are there to catch him, but for how long? When is enough enough?

I found myself pulling for Craig. I cheered even his smallest steps to stay clean and felt immense disappointment when he faltered. As I read, I wondered what one thing would make a crack addict want to stop. I thought that by having to degrade yourself by fighting rats for food from a dumpster, or selling your thin, dirty mattress for mere pennies or having to hawk the canned goods your parents purchased would be enough, but once on the binge, it means nothing. I have never been able to understand the attraction of this particular drug. A drug that will make you lose everything to chase after a high that you can never obtain, while you lose everything and everyone dear to you. Johnson-Hodge clearly and distinctly describes Craig's quest. I kept thinking one had to have gone through this to give such an authentic account of the life of a crack addict. If you are looking for a well-written street or urban novel this is it, because it can not get anymore real than this story. High five to Ms Johnson Hodge for a excellent, riveting novel.

Jeanette
APOOO BookClub'
Motown Review Book Club

While there are many authors in the African-American Literary Community, only a select few possess that rare gift of balancing imagery and dialogue, power-packed narrative and a unique blend of intensity, emotion and struggle. Writers like Colin Channer, Bernice McFadden, Tracy Price-Thompson and Gloria Mailette fill the bill. One of my favorites over the past decade or so is Margaret Johnson-Hodge. Since reading 'Butterscotch Blues', I have been inspired by her attention to detail in the written word. A simultaneous student and admirer of her brilliance, to say I had been eagerly awaiting another effort is an understatement.

Then, suddenly, she steps back onto the literary scene in grand style with RED LIGHT, GREEN LIGHT, a modern day classic about a Forty something crack addict Craig Stevens, and his daily struggles with reform. Clean for forty-one days but cognizant that the number of days means little, when I say the sobriety issue is a daily battle, it because of excellent emphasis by Hodge in weaving her tale. He attends meetings to help him stay clean and receives strong but tough help from his landlady Miss Raymond and his sponsor Brother Raheim, but when 9/11 comes....My goodness.


RED LIGHT GREEN LIGHT, penned in spectacular form, is an excellent thriller in which the readers are brought face -to face with the aftershocks of our modern day American Tragedy. Craig is a unique male protagonist as he struggles with his drug addiction, but especially on the day in history that made many of us here rest uneasy. Having my own personal account of that fateful day only made me appreciate the realism of the tome, and how it affected us all.

Rare is the classic tale that can be read 20/30 years from now and still impact us as if perused yesterday; especially in a community that desperately needs change from the microwavable fiction devoid of quality. RED LIGHT, GREEN LIGHT, by Margaret Johnson-Hodge, is that rare needle in the AA literary haystack that pulls at your soul. Fantastically written, This is a must in your library of classic reads.

William Fredrick Cooper
(Author of THERE'S ALWAYS A REASON)

Crack cocaine has a stronghold on Craig Stevens` life. Craig is a forty-something year old man struggling to combat his addiction. Finding himself doing things he never thought a college-educated man would have to do, Red Light Green Light invites us into a "crack head's" world - including triumphs and failures at recovery.

Leaving no stone unturned about the struggle to overcome addiction, Ms. Hodge delivers a novel complete with drama, romance and spirituality, all under the backdrop of September 11th, when two planes strike the World Trade towers. In this novel in particular, I was able to see how certain events trigger certain emotions within people and sometimes causes them to act, for better or for worse, on those emotions. Margaret Johnson-Hodge writes in a way that will cause readers to feel as if they are right in the scene with the characters. When Craig was on his quest to get his "high", I felt as I was walking right next to him. Details were very vivid and Ms. Hodge's has a no holds-barred approach with this selection.

Gazelle, Pernia and Scott share in Craig's recovery process - be it a positive, negative or indifferent influence, they all participate. A central theme in this story is the need for a recovering addict to have a strong support system. In most cases, the stronger the support system, the less likely an addict will relapse. The most important thing in recovery, however, is that the abuser really wants to help themselves. We waste time by helping others that don't help themselves. This in no way signifies that we should give up on them, but we can love a person suffering from addiction from afar and even more importantly, we can always pray for them.

I'm still rooting for Craig to stay clean. Every day is a battle.

Set along the backdrop of our nation's greatest tragedy, 9/11, Margaret Johnson-Hodge takes us back and gives another look at those struggling amidst another rubble - drugs. She is one of few authors who can shed light upon seemingly unloving characters in unfavorable situations, and pull at your heart strings.

The story opens with Craig Stevens moving about life as a recovering crack addict. He is counting the clean days because each is so precious on his road to recovery and redemption. After the towers tumble, so does Craig's reserve. Temptation welcomes him at every turn.

The effects of this story are amazing! I found myself rocking back and forth at times while craddling the book as if Craig's life depended on it. This was truly an up-close and personal look at another type of suffering that I never imagined.

Red Light Green Light is a beautifully-written thriller laced with romance. Though the novel was frightening at times, I made it through the GREEN lights and loved the emotional rollercoaster ride. As with all Margaret's novels, I highly recommend it and encourage you to GO get your copy today.

Margaret bolding takes on the subject matter of addiction, and in this novel, she digs deep into the mind of a crack addict. It seemed and felt so real that I found myself skipping the pages because I just couldn't handle all the details. I did feel that at times Margaret lingered in the addiction too long and parts of the story dragged. I felt Margaret could have brought more of this addicts past to the surface and more about his relationship with his old girlfriend in order to not just feel the connection to him but to understand why he loved her so much and why she loved him. It was touched on it...but I just felt like it could have been more. Overall, this was not my type of story so from that standpoint I wouldn't recommend it. I just expecting something different...like, not gross in detail.

Red Light Green Light
Margaret Johnson-Hodge
Sutton Place, Oct 2008, $16.95
ISBN: 9780975402610

Forty something crack addict Craig Stevens has been clean for forty-one days, but is not proud of being in his second month of clean as he knows the number of days means nothing; each new dawn denotes struggling all over again. He attends meetings near his rental in Far Rockaway to help him stay clean and receives strong but tough help from his landlady Miss Raymond and his sponsor Brother Raheim.

However, on this morning, Craig like so many other New Yorkers will be tested. The Twin Towers have been hit by jets and collapsed. Though he desperately needs a hit, Craig with assistance from Miss Raymond and Brother Raheim holds off although he prays he does not stumble to what looks inevitable. Instead he needs to know if Gazelle, the one woman who mattered before Crack took over his life and drove her away, is okay as a few years ago she worked in the shadow of the Towers. With a small advance from Miss Raymond who controls his money, he begins his public transportation and walks to her home in Queens only to learn she and her family moved to Hempstead. He continues his quest in Long island where he finds out that she works in one of the Towers so begins the next leg, Ground Zero to see if Gazelle, assuming she is alive, needs help although what he can do he knows is zero.

RED LIGHT GREEN LIGHT is an excellent character driven thriller in which the audience sees first hand the impact of the 9/11 tragedy through the eyes of Craig and those who help or hinder him on his quest. Craig is a unique protagonist as he struggles with his addiction all the time, but especially on the 9/11 day of infamy. Margaret Johnson-Hodge provides readers with a poignant powerful look at the most traumatic day in American history through a unique anti-hero. This is a book so memorable it will become a classic in the years to come.

Harriet Klausner

I love this book, Ms. Johnson-Hodge has a gift to make you literally feel her story. I have never read a book that dealt with an crack addict from the inside out. I felt like I now know how it is to be addicted to something and realized how its so easy to fall back...drugs or other things. This book will go down in history as one of the best books I have ever read. I didnt want it to end!

Through the voice of a forty-five year old crack addict, Craig Stevens's stop and go journey through the black hole is magnified in RED LIGHT, GREEN LIGHT by Margaret Johnson-Hodge. On the right track and forty-one days clean, the attack of the United States on 9/11, occurs and Craig is on a mission to find his first true love, his high school sweetheart, Juliet aka Gazelle. His last knowledge of her work place was across the street from the Trade Center.

Craig sets off from Far Rockaway to South Ozone Park, Queens only to find Julia has moved. After another trek and upon arriving in Long Island, Craig finds no Juliet, nor her grandmother, with whom she lives. What he does find are some strange characters in the form of neighbors. Johnson-Hodge showcases the insecurities and waywardness of these characters which takes on a life of their own. Through the span of several days, he manages to make a temporary home for himself at Juliet's as he awaits her return. However, his needs and the monkey on his back takes him to some dark places.

Johnson-Hodge aptly portrays, in detailed fashion, the mind, the knowing of an addict. Her descriptions of persons, places and things are very vivid and telling and adds a haunting element to the story being told. Described in gritty fashion RED LIGHT, GREEN LIGHT is a true must read. Yes, there are characters you will dislike and get under your skin and their behaviors are not logical. This is where a discussion can begin to decipher the how and why for some sense of balance and understanding, which you may or may not receive when you are finished reading. Additionally, the author takes us back into Craig's past from high school, to college and back home for a thorough understanding of the family's history and how Craig came to be. RED LIGHT, GREEN LIGHT is a cautious yet engrossing tale, told through the eyes of a crack addict.

Reviewed by Dawn R. Reeves
of The RAWSISTAZ(tm) Reviewers

Although this book gave an excellent view of a drug addict, to me it showed not one strong woman. The women interacting with the addict were weak,co-dependent, and needy.

I would have liked to have seen at least one strong woman in this book.