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4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
Don't let the title (or author's name) fool you or turn you off - this is an amazing story of an amazing woman who overcame circumstances many of us wouldn't even survive, let alone rise above. With the death of her mother at age 11, Cupcake Brown quickly found herself in the hands of predators, and on to a life of drinking, using hard drugs, and prostitution. Despite doing her best to remain employed, it took hitting the proverbial rock bottom to see that she did not, in reality, have a handle on her drug use (and that, yes, she was an alcoholic). And as they say, from rock bottom, you can only go up. This title is available in print, as an e-book, and as an e-audiobook. However you get to it, give it a place on your reading list. You won't regret it!
This book was outside my comfort zone. It’s a gut-wrenching story of a young girl through her adult life and how each of these choices led her to where she is today. I liked that it was in her voice but I thought some of her teen years were too long for me.
This is in your face reality check. I never thought about the lives of drug addicts this way until now.
3.5 stars. The story was compelling and out-of-control, but had a happy ending.
Cupcake Brown, 11 years old, finds her mother dead one morning. Shortly thereafter, she finds out her dad isn't really her father and custody of Cupcake and her brother is given to their biological father, who comes out of the woodwork to collect the Social Security money. Once he has Cupcake and her brother, he promptly drops them off at an abusive foster home. While there, Cupcake is raped, beaten up, and generally abused. She runs away multiple times, but is always deposited back despite her claims - and evidence - of abuse. She eventually runs away for good, ends up hitchhiking, prostituting, joining a gang, robbing, stealing, and taking drugs and drinking 24/7. I know I've led a sheltered life, but this book definitely brought me up to speed on the various drugs on the street; seriously, there were several I'd never even heard of. All from age 11.
Cupcake ends up landing a series of 9-5 jobs and eventually seeks help in her mid-20s for her addictions. She goes to rehab, gets cleaned up, goes back to school, and eventually on to law school, where she graduates with honors. In the beginning when Cucpcake was on the street, I had to keep reminding myself that this was real; this really happened to someone. It was a fantastical story - and if true - nothing less than miraculous. I'm notoriously gullibe, but even I had a few moments of doubt about Cupcake's life; surely it was exaggerated or her mom mistakenly named her Cupcake when she meant Job - I don't know. Giving her the benefit of the doubt, though, it was an amazing story.
Some of the chapter endings were a little cheesy (i.e. "I had no idea how much my life was about to change"; "Little did I know this was one promise I would keep;" etc). But overall, Cupcake was immensely likable and how can you not root for someone to turn their life around? Overall, a good read that I'd recommend.
Cupcake Brown, 11 years old, finds her mother dead one morning. Shortly thereafter, she finds out her dad isn't really her father and custody of Cupcake and her brother is given to their biological father, who comes out of the woodwork to collect the Social Security money. Once he has Cupcake and her brother, he promptly drops them off at an abusive foster home. While there, Cupcake is raped, beaten up, and generally abused. She runs away multiple times, but is always deposited back despite her claims - and evidence - of abuse. She eventually runs away for good, ends up hitchhiking, prostituting, joining a gang, robbing, stealing, and taking drugs and drinking 24/7. I know I've led a sheltered life, but this book definitely brought me up to speed on the various drugs on the street; seriously, there were several I'd never even heard of. All from age 11.
Cupcake ends up landing a series of 9-5 jobs and eventually seeks help in her mid-20s for her addictions. She goes to rehab, gets cleaned up, goes back to school, and eventually on to law school, where she graduates with honors. In the beginning when Cucpcake was on the street, I had to keep reminding myself that this was real; this really happened to someone. It was a fantastical story - and if true - nothing less than miraculous. I'm notoriously gullibe, but even I had a few moments of doubt about Cupcake's life; surely it was exaggerated or her mom mistakenly named her Cupcake when she meant Job - I don't know. Giving her the benefit of the doubt, though, it was an amazing story.
Some of the chapter endings were a little cheesy (i.e. "I had no idea how much my life was about to change"; "Little did I know this was one promise I would keep;" etc). But overall, Cupcake was immensely likable and how can you not root for someone to turn their life around? Overall, a good read that I'd recommend.
Seriously, this woman is a lawyer now! Uh uh, no way. Reading this book seriously made me wonder and it makes doing something like TFA all the more real to me. It only takes one or two key players to change a single life. That's all it really takes sometime. I thought it was a little long on the antics and a little short on the heroics, but I guess that's the balance of her life. I enjoyed it overall. Good for people looking for an unbelievable turn around story.
dark
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
I really enjoyed this as an audiobook version. Hearing her tell the story was literally the icing and cherry on top. Wonderful book
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced