Rising

Survivor: Rising

Title: Rising
Author: Darnella Ford
Date of Publication: April 2005
Summary: Symone starts by retelling her life story from the beginning. Symone grew up in Dorchester, Massachusetts in the projects. Her mother is Dolores who has a beautiful physically with a beautiful matching voice. But Symone says her mother is ugly on the inside since Dolores is an alcoholic drug addict prostitute. Symone feels she is different because she has a blue tint in her eyes and blond strains hair while everyone has black brown eyes and hair. Symone finds out her father is white and he doesn’t even know she exist because Dolores told her it was a one night thing. On June 17 before Symone turn nine years old. Symone found her mom dead on the floor and it took two days for 911 to show up. Soon she became a ward of the state. Then Ridge and Madeline Huston a white couple came to adopt her to live I Eden, Michigan. She meets the Huston children, Audrey who is rude and Chandler who is quiet. Symone becomes suspicious of the family when Chandler was hiding in her room when Ridge is looking for her.
                Fast forward to Symone being twenty-eight years old making her way back to Eden but not alone. Symone is with her lover Teek. Symone had two lovers Tee and Natalie but soon Natalie ended it. Symone brings Teek with her to one of Ridge important meetings. Soon meets back with Audrey who is plastic looking with having plastic surgery Chandler has low self-esteem and was anorexic but now she is obese. During the meeting Ridge states he rewriting his will. He basically cuts off Audrey for being promiscuous, Chandler for being obese and Symone for being bisexual. Also he takes control of Symone art gallery which get Symone infuriated. One night her and Ridge was home alone he rapes her and it was the first of many. Now she is haunted form that night. Now she with Teek and they were in middle of fooling around she finds Ridge watching them and tells Teek. He freaks out and wants to leave but she doesn’t want him to leave and tells him that Ridge rapes her and feels bad and comforts Symone when she cries. Symone and Chandler have a talk about Chandler’s weight and Teek. Symone tells Chandler that she was also raped by Ridge and asks if she wants to be free.
           Then Audrey, Symone and Chandler talk about how all of them were rape by Ridge there father when they were younger. Both Symone and Chandler feel its poetic justice to killed Ridge while Audrey is apprehensive. Symone is to try to kill her father alone. But Symone too late to get justice because Ridge has a heart attack. Teek then ask Symone when is it over and that she should get some help and tells her that everyone was a victim at one point of their life and lives. Madeline then declares that Ridge is dead and repeats your father is dead to Symone. Symone finds out the Ridge was actually her biological father not just adopted father. After six months of Ridge dying Symone gets back to normal through therapy and states she a survivor.
Quote:“I’m broken, don’t you get it, broken” (Ford 213)
Symone is telling Teek that she is broken and in order to fix herself she need to kill her Ridge whom raped her. This quote connects to the title of the book Rising because Symone has been broken since she was little girl and now she trying to rise above being broken. My reaction was understood connection with the title of the novel. Symone is rising from being a broken person

Almost A Woman

Finding Yourself: Almost a Woman

Title of book: Almost a Woman

Author: Esmeralda Santiago

Date of Publication: October 1999

Publisher: First Vintage Books

Summary:

 Esmeralda Santiago or Negi as her family calls her, moves from Puerto Rico at twelve to Brooklyn New York at first with her mother and two brothers and one sister. Her family moves because her little brother had gotten sick and Mami wanted to get health care. Soon Negi finds out she is Hispanic and not Puerto Rican in America. Negi just recently turn thirteen years old and she wants to have her own solitude. She had wanted a bed to herself not sharing with her little sister. Also she was missing her father who is still in Puerto Rico. Negi had to translate for Mami at the welfare office. Mami is very strict and overprotective of Negi due to being in America. Negi she just wants independence from her family sometimes. But being the oldest she has responsibilities. Negi is soon conflicted to who she is American or Puerto Rican due to people telling her otherwise Fast forward a couple of years and Negi is enrolled in New York’s prestigious Performing Arts High School. She is soon gets a starring role in the school production of Cleopatra. In school she tries to find a way for her to fuse her cultures together.

Soon Negi gets an interest in boys and Mami does not like it. Mami had told Negi she not allowed to date but Negi went on dates. The dates were just comical. After Negi goes on her series of dates, she found that being independent is had to accomplish because there’s going to be obstacles. Also trying to cut the leash from Mami who she feels like is overbearing her. Soon Negi graduates from Manhattan’s Performing Arts High School. Then Negi leaves her family house and decides to move with her first real boyfriend Ulvi to Florida. She becomes really homesick and misses her family especially her mother. Negi realizes the deep bond she has between her and Mami and how distance and time goes by it would not change it. Negi and Ulvi relationship is very unhealthy. Negi friend Iris had claimed the bracelet that Ulvi had gotten her reminded her of shackles. Negi had doubted any unhealthy relationship but soon realize how perfect her seem to her at first is not who he is now. Negi then leaves Ulvi in Florida and comes back to the family in New York.  Few years later, Negi goes to Harvard University and graduated. Then, she gets a Master’s degree from Sarah Lawrence College. Recalls the time of her mother telling that she should try to fit in but don’t be too “American”. She reflects on how during her early years on arriving in American how she felt out of place and wants to feel like she belongs. Now she knows her identity and how she is Esmeralda “Negi” Santiago a Puerto Rican girl living in an America trying to find herself.

Quote:

 “Love was something you get over. If Ulvi left, there would be another man, but there would never, ever be another Mami” (pg. 310).

Quotation Context:

Negi is talking to Mami when she comes back from living in Florida. She tells Mami how love is easily to get over and there can be other man then Ulvi. But Mami can never be replaced or can there be another. This is important because the bond between Mami and Negi intensify and it seems that Negi finally understands her mother more now than when she was thirteen. I personally agree and understand what Negi was telling her mother and I think not just a mother but also a grandmother, grandfather or sibling can’t be another. This quote I enjoyed about the book because it was Negi finally  realizing how badly she needs Mami and thaa it time for her to get out of an unhealthy relationship.