Finding Fish: A Memoir by Antwone Q. Fisher, Mim E. Rivas
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Book Reviews of Finding Fish: A Memoir
Book Review: Thought Provoking
Summary: 5 Stars
After reading the review titled, "Overrated" and hearing of all the horrible stories in the news lately about the terrible situations that children endure in the foster care system in this country, I must say that reading Mr. Fisher's book makes me believe that ALL foster care stories, good and bad, must be shared and read and understood. It is my hope that as a result of the kind of honesty and painful truth shared by Mr. Fisher in this wonderful book and beautifully woven story, that as a community, we can find alternatives to the current system so that no other children will suffer the way Mr. Fisher suffered as a child.The author of the review "Overrated" alludes that it is better to stay in one foster home and be abused physically and emotionally by one family than to be moved from place to place and endure abuse in various homes. To that I must say, one incident of abuse is too much! And it does not matter where it occures or with whom, the abuse is still horrible. The Pickett family that Mr. Fisher describes in this book can not feel better about themselves because they provided a roof over the heads of those foster children. What the Picketts did was collect a check on a monthly basis, not out of compassion, but as a business venture. The care of those children was paid for by the taxpayers in the state of Ohio, so foster parents who abuse have no right to feel like martyrs.
In Finding Fish, Mr. Fisher also shares the unfortunate events of the other children left in the care of this Pickett family. It is clear that Mr. Fisher is compassionate and sympathetic to the treatment of all children. My sense of the book is that Mr. Fisher does not want to reveal himself as a victim. He never feels sorry for himself, but through the beautiful language, we all feel for Little Antwone and the other children in that household.
The author of the "Overrated" review says that we can say that Mr. Fisher is "lucky" for his story and that Denzel Washington found an interest in it, but I think that an actor and a humanitarian of the caliber of Denzel Washington understands our duty as a nation to share our secrets and prevent terrible things from happening to children. I don't think luck had anything to do with it. Mr. Fisher is a very talented storyteller and writer. I am happy he is being recognized for that talent and that the terrible people he lived with did not have the ability to prevent his talent from flourishing.
So, read Finding Fish not because it is a new story that is told, but rather, read it because unfortunately, this story happens far too frequently and oftentimes is not told quite this well. To the author of the "Overrated" review, I must say perhaps you should read Finding Fish again. I am sure there are worse stories, but most of us don't have the stomach to read about them.
Mr. Fisher told his story with humor and poetry and dignity and he deserves the happy ending that we, as readers, longed to read about.
Book Review: Finding Fish, as deep as the Ocean
Summary: 5 Stars
Finding Fish is a very inspiring book for all of you that feel like you have nothing and feel like you will never amount to anything in your life. This book is about a young boy, Antwone,that grew up in a bad evironment and ended up moving from a foster home to orphanage type homes, to the street, and finally went to the marines.He went through so much, but managed to make something of himself.
Antwone went through a very hard life, and conquered many hardships in his life. For example, when he was a young boy and living with the picketts, he was abused in many different ways and he made it through all of the pain and the put downs. They always told him how worthless he was and that he would never amount to anything, and he believed them, until he got out and realixed what he could really do. He grew up not having too many friends and always struggled to fit in, until he got to high school, and knew how to stand up for himself. Even through all of his pain and misery, Antwone never used any kind of drug to try and take the pain away, for example, when he was younger and on the street, he dealt with a bad guy that was a pimp and a drug seller and he had chances to try it, but he never did.
As Antwone went through all of these different homes, he met many bad people and some people that tried to help him out. Even with all the bad people around, he stuck to the good road, and decided to become a Marine, because he had nowhere else to go. When he was in the Marines, he learned of many good traits that he had despite all of the times that the Picketts told him he was worthless. For example, his majors at the Marines wrote that he:
"...performs duties in an orderly
and professional manner. Has a
forceful attitude that gets hings
done. Very impressive in uniform
and civilian attire."
In his last report, his Major said:
"SH2 Fisher is always impressive
in uniform. He had an excellent
written and oral command of the
English language. He fully
suppports the Navy Equal
Opportunity programs. Petty
Officer Fisher has tremendous
potential and excellent qualites."
After all of this, he turned his life around and did better for himself. He made it through life becoming a writer and making his money.
I am positive that no matter who you are, you will find at least on thing, if not more, to relate. This book is very blunt and deep in the way that they describe everything that goes on and happens in his life. I think that this book is so incredibly good and I would give it a 20 out of 10. It is always interesting and there is never a time where it is just not interesting. Everyone should read this book at least once in their life.
Book Review: I liked this book.
Summary: 5 Stars
In the 1950s, Cleveland Ohio was a proud place that was a brand name city, a family city, a ball city, and a city that was filled with the entertainment of jazz music, gospel music, doo-wop music, blues music, and the music of the symphony. It was already a big city at this time, and it was on the way to becoming the fifth largest city in America. There were thrift stores, barber shops, record shops, clothing, shoe, and liquor stores. It seemed like a happy city to a lot of people, but living in Cleveland wasn't easy because the temperament, weather, and work were harsh to a lot of people.
Baby Boy Fisher was raised in institutions ever since his birth in prison to a single mother. After a while, she decides she doesn't show any interest in caring for him anymore, and she starts looking for foster homes for her son to live in. Baby Boy Fisher goes to live with the Pickett family in Glenville Ohio, and that's when his terrible new life begins.
When he comes to live with the Pickett family, he starts to experience constant physical abuse from Mrs. Pickett and Mr. Pickett because of things that he is accused of doing but didn't really do. Fisher gets to see his mother sometimes, and his caseworkers always make observations between the two of them. Fisher and Dwight, his foster brother, don't get along well at all at first and they get into a lot of fights. Fisher's caseworkers give suggestions to Mrs. Pickett on how to handle Fisher and his behavior, but she doesn't try them and she constantly misses her appointments with them. After a while, Mrs. Pickett sends Fisher back to the child welfare building because she's tired of his negative behavior. Fisher's journey for a place to live resumes.
He goes to live in George Junior Republic, an all male reform school. While there, he gets schooling from teachers and begins to develop social skills with his other classmates. He also decides he wants to be an artist or photographer. When he turns 19, he enlists in the navy. Want to know what happens to him while he's in the navy, and after he gets out of the navy? Read this book to find out!
I liked this book because it inspired me by thinking about how Antwone handled with and put up with physical abuse all of those years. If I would have been Antwone, I would have tried to run away from the home, and I would have told somebody that she was abusing me, because you need to tell someone if you are being abused by someone else, that way the person won't do it to another innocent person ever again.
--- Reviewed by Ashley, Reading Diva
Book Review: Mind Blowing
Summary: 5 Stars
"Finding Fish" was the best-suited title for this book. Antwone Quenton Fisher walks us through his road to self discovery through a variety of paths he comes across until the end of his book where the protagonist, and author has finally "found" himself. This moving memoir is for anyone. I didn't find anything wrong with the book, honestly. Whether you're interested in a certain genre, or author, European culture, or whatever, you name it - this book is still for anyone. It's not a redundant diary or a self -indulging autobiography, it's a memoir of an incredible man's lifetime achievements in a far from simple life. This book taught me that there is no easy way out in life. I realized that our hardships cannot be scapegoats. If someone can endure sexual, physical and mental abuse, grow up poor, have no one to turn to, can't use school as an escape, joins the navy as a way out and still comes out a successful screenplay writer and a husband and a father, than others who have it easier have no excuse. Fisher's foster brother grows up under the same circumstances however ends up drug addicted, angry, desperate, in teen juvenile homes and later in jail for crime, so we come to acknowledge that your life is what you make it in the end. You are in control of your future, not "fate" or "destiny" but the most powerful force of all, yourself and your will. What I think is important to point out is that any book with as traumatic and touching a plot will be interesting, furthermore, good. However, there's that extra component to a book that makes it jump from good to remarkable. Fisher without a doubt, extremely adequately fulfills this. Whether you're crying or laughing or feeling pity or pride for Fisher, he's getting a reaction out of you. Through his story, his words, you are feeling emotion and this made the book page by page, mind blowing. There were moments where I was at a loss of words for how stunned I would be at the fact that this story is unbelievably true. This book is for anyone who has been through hard times and gotten through them, for anyone who can relate to having a difficult life but still ends up successful, for anyone who can use the inspiration of courage, for anyone who wants to read a story of sentimental braveness that will not soon be forgotten.Book Review: Fish
Summary: 5 Stars
The book is about a young African American boy named Antwone Quenton Fisher whose mother had him when she was incarcerated. After he was born, he was sent different group homes until a family finally came to get him. His foster parents were an African American family named Mr. And Mrs. Pickett. The Pickett's would verbally and physically abuse Antwone along with the other foster kids. Mrs. Pickett, who made the kids call her Mu-deah, told Antwone that she would cut off his penis if he urinated in the bed again. When he was about seven years old, his babysitter would get him and her undressed and make him do all kinds of nasty things to her when they were alone. Mu-deah would call all of the kids nigga and each of them knew whom she was calling by her tone. She would tell Antwone, "Don't nobody want you, when your mom got out of jail she didn't even come to see you so she didn't want you either."
I liked the book a whole lot because it touched me in a way that almost made me break down in tears. Even after all what happened to him in the past, he still had his head making things possible for his self. It was sometimes in the book where I got little angry because I don't think anyone should be treated that way. I recommend this to all ages old enough to read and understand what is going on in the story because It will move you in a special way. The age group I definitely recommend it to be is fourteen to nineteen because in this day and time, people really don't appreciate what they have. No matter how bad off you are, there is always someone that is less fortunate than you are.