The Ignorant Man’s Son

A Memoir

By Victor James Hill, Indie Author

Genre: Non-fiction/Memoir

Pages 174

Via: Author Request

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

When  Her Momness was young a whipper-snapper – back when dinosaurs roamed the earth – she spent a coupla summers on staff at a Christian camp in California. One of the musical guests one week was a tenor. He sang a song Mom never forgot. (And for Mom, that’s really sayin’ somethin’!) It was called His Stubborn Love. We’ll get to the lyrics in a min. So kindly keep your shirt on. But this memoir reminded Her Momness of that song. 

I’ll let Mom explain:

 

The Ignorant Man’s Son is a highly readable memoir  about a man who grew up with his single mom and siblings in the Projects of Detroit and Pontiac, Michigan. By the time Victor Hill was thirteen, he’d witnessed deadly shootings. Heroin addiction. Brutal violence. He bottled up his emotions, starved for a male role model. Yearned for a father to guide him. He makes some bad decisions in high school and starts down a bad road, dropping out of school to pursue material wealth, women, drugs, and social status.

As I got older, I would understand that the more likely you are to get caught, the easier it is to act right. To behave when no one’s looking – that’s the greatest challenge.

Hill found they were all illusions. As ephemeral as puffs of smoke that vanish on the next breeze.

A Sudden Turn

Author Victor James Hill’s life takes a sudden and dramatic turn as the result of an auto accident and a wrecked truck. The accident changes how he looks at the world. 

I knew guys like D – I knew their moms, too! – I wasn’t an outsider coming in. I grew up there, and I’d put in the time to gain their respect.

He noticed how many community kids ran the streets, and it gave him an idea. He would start a youth basketball league in the heart of the Projects.

The project would surpass Victor’s wildest dreams. From “The Lakeside Four,” a 3-on-3 team that racked up multiple national championships, to a summer youth program that brought hundreds of kids to the AME church, Victor’s basketball league brought hope to a new generation. It changed Victor, too.

Everything I wanted from a father – that attention I craved as a kid – I was giving all of that to those kids. And it changed how I saw myself.

The Ignorant Man’s Son: A Memoir recounts Hill’s journey to find himself through community service. He thought he was searching for a father, but he found his true purpose in serving his community’s children.

Heart, Grit

On balance, this is a compelling story with lots of heart and grit. It’s a little Glory Road. A little Stand and Deliver. A bit To Sir, With Love. (Yeah, one of us is old enough to remember the book and the movie starring Sidney Poitier. The older-than-dirt one. Wait. Is that a brontosaurus?)

Intense, Authentic

The writing is intense. Authentic. Raw. It’s articulate and eloquent and draws you in to the lives of the Lakeside Four basketball stars (Geroge, Taiwan, Lug and Tavey) and those around them.

From the first time I saw those four, I recognized the Projects in them – the toughness, the fighting spirit, the special kind of smart that comes from sliding from the streets to the honor roll and back again. Those things could take them far.

But I also recognized what they were missing. Because I was missing it, too. No matter what I had in my life, there was always a gap where a father should have been.

Language Alert

Most sentences and paragraphs are brief, pithy, and packed with piquant insights and observations. Some readers may find the timeline difficult. It’s non-linear and jumps around a lot. Also note there’s some rough language. But it’s not pervasive or gratuitous. So we’re willing to overlook it this once.

Stubborn Love

There’s a lot of heart in this gently faith-flavored book. Also loss. Confusion, frustration, and devastation. Tumult and turmoil. But it’s also rimmed with hope. Marinated in mercy. Garnished with grace. And steeped in stubborn love. The closing chapters could wring tears from a turnip. 

Oh, and that song, His Stubborn Love? It goes like:

Sin and sadness long had bent my spirit to the ground

And life for me unbearable had grown.

Fear and failure marked my face so deeply with a frown

Until God’s stubborn love upon my shone.

Pursuing, ever-wooing me He came.

And since that day I’ve never been the same!

Now I’m basking in His stubborn love.

An unrelenting love has set me free

I’m rejoicing in His stubborn love.

… His stubborn love that will not let me go!

Finally, An Ignorant Man’s Son is an extraordinary story that deserves a wide audience. By the end of the book, in fact, you’ll want to stand up and cheer. We did. 

Our Rating: 4.5

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