A Place Called Home: A Memoir
by David Ambroz
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Description
"As a child, David Ambroz was raised homeless in New York City, the home of Wall Street and more than 100,000 homeless children. For David and his two siblings, their mother's diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia sets them in motion for a life of poverty, violence and instability as they travel across New York and New England seeking shelter. For eleven years, home for David means living in train stations, subway cars, 24-hour diners, and wherever is safe and warm; bathing in public show more restrooms; and stealing food to quell his hunger. When he gets into foster care, it feels like salvation, but it soon proves to be just as unsafe for young people-more of his foster siblings are put on a prison pipeline than college-bound. Surmounting violence, continued poverty and physical and emotional abuse at the hands of his caregivers, David harnesses an inner grit to escape the inevitable outcome for kids like him. He takes shelter and finds hope on his own in libraries, schools, and in the occasional adult angel. Through hard work and unwavering resolve, he is able to get into Vassar College, the first significant step out from the yolk of poverty, and later graduates UCLA School of Law. This heart-wrenching and inspiring story about young people pulls back the curtain on homelessness and poverty in the lives of children and shines a pivotal light on generations of kids that have been systematically ignored and overlooked. A Place Called Home is both David's powerful personal account through the lens of a child surviving it daily. And as the go-to child welfare advocate for the Obama administration and major U.S. companies, A Place Called Home is a beckoning call to our national conscience to move from pity to action"-- show lessTags
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209 works; 4 members
Author Information
1 Work 70 Members
Awards and Honors
Awards
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- A Place Called Home: A Memoir
- Original title
- A Place Called Home: A Memoir
- Original publication date
- 2022
- People/Characters
- Hugh John David Ambroz; Jessica Ambroz; Alex Ambroz; Mary Ambroz; Mae; Buck (show all 13); Holly LeBeau; Steve LaBeau; Mel; Dr. Alex Ambroz, Sr.; Gabriela; Mateo; Sebastian
- Important places
- New York, New York, USA; Albany, New York, USA; Pittsfield, Massachusetts, USA; Holyoke, Massachusetts, USA; Northampton, Massachusetts, USA; Amherst, Massachusetts, USA (show all 8); Logroño, Spain; Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York, USA
- Epigraph
- “illegitimi non carborundum”
- Dedication
- To my mother, who taught me how to understand and forgive . . . to conquer one impossible thing at a time.
To my brother, Alex, and sister, Jessica. My left and right, forward and backward. Their lives inspire me to reach further than I think I might. - First words
- I’m hungry.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Foster care is an inflection point where we can halt the systemic inheritance of poverty and violence. All of our children deserve this chance.
- Blurbers
- Clinton, Hillary Rodham; Walls, Jeannette; Pemburton, Steve; Crow, David; Koppel, Ted; Ferrazzi, Keith (show all 7); Di Nonno, Madeline
Classifications
- Genres
- Biography & Memoir, Nonfiction
- DDC/MDS
- 362.7 — Society, government, & culture Social problems and social services Social Welfare Child welfare
- LCC
- HV4506 .N6 .A43 — Social sciences Social pathology. Social and public welfare. Criminology Social pathology. Social and public welfare. Protection, assistance and relief Mendicancy. Vagabondism. Tramps.
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 70
- Popularity
- 446,461
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (4.00)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 9
- ASINs
- 2
