The Last Block in Harlem

[samarnold1975]

>The Last Block in Harlem – Christopher Herz

 

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Synopsis

All fire escapes lead back to the same block in Sugar Hill, Harlem- where kids run through hydrants and music blares from stereos plugged into lampposts. When a new resident (the story’s unnamed narrator) notices the trash polluting the picturesque streets and tainting the block’s beauty, he is spurred to action. However, his best intentions go awry when the clean-up brings media coverage that in turn, sets off a rash of evictions and ushers in an influx of new and affluent tenants. In an attempt to preserve his neighborhood, the tenant mobilizes a grassroots effort to improve the neighborhood from the inside out.

 

Realizing he has yet again polluted his reality with unintended consequences, his fight to clean up the block evolves into a quest to cleanse his soul. The choices he makes cannot change the past and the secrets that haunt him, but will alter the future for himself, his family…and the last block in Harlem.

Review

This was a good book mainly because it is like nothing I have read before. The plot is easy and the writing engaging. The issues that the book deals with are common in all societies and well written about. The main character within the book is never identified by name but this does not distract from the story.

 

If I had one negative comment to make it would be that I am not sure about the ending of the book. Having said that I am still thinking about the book, a good factor for any read.

 

I urge you to get your own copy and make your mind up about the end yourself. The book will not disappoint at all.