Review of Hard Knocks: Memoir of a Small Moment
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Kristiana Infante
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- Latest Review: Hard Knocks: Memoir of a Small Moment by Ray Lopez
Review of Hard Knocks: Memoir of a Small Moment
[Following is a volunteer review of "Hard Knocks: Memoir of a Small Moment" by Ray Lopez.]
Hard Knocks had me feeling emotions I haven't felt in a long time. Ray, the author, did a great job writing this book and truly pulling your attention.
He begins by detailing his family history before starting his own story as a baby, which helps identify characters in future chapters. Even though I had never heard of Ray Lopez before reading this, it was very intriguing and captivating to read everything he went through as he grew from his own point of view. He does jump around a little bit here and there and I would get lost for a second and backtrack to make sure I didn't miss anything. Some chapters start at a different time than the previous chapter ended, but once I figured that out it was easy to jump back in and follow along.
He details how he struggled with not just feelings and anger at a young age but also with substances. Which eventually led to school issues, gang violence, and a short stint locked up. He also talks about the moments he had a more strained relationship with his mom and about losing his grandfather. He also recounts his different relationships with piers and friends and how some of them deeply affected his life.
He shares about his time in a mental hospital which ended up helping him in ways that I did not expect. There are a few moments when he is in the hospital that threw me off a little bit. He referenced himself as God. I do believe the experiences he recounts in his writing but feel that since he was in the hospital on medication, that's why he referred to himself in this way.
Ray's retelling of his life is quite inspiring and motivating, learning how he struggled and how he didn't always handle it the best, but was still able to find himself and find God. I enjoyed his love story with his wife Paula, how they knew each other as children, and how he finished his book with them starting their lives together. A lot of his history sounds like it came straight out of a fictional book or movie! It was very cool to learn that a lot of what happens in fiction does happen in real life.
I will warn you that this is not kid-appropriate and may be appropriate for young adults and up. Sex, drugs, and violence are a big part of his history. Chapter 23 gets quite graphic in a different way than previous chapters, I had difficulty reading it but appreciated that it was a short chapter. If you don't like sexual violence, I would skip this chapter if you can be sensitive like me. I love how he added his own poems in some of his chapters and Bible verses at the end of each chapter that relate to his stories.
I would rate this book a 5 out of 5 and highly recommend this read! I did not find any grammar mistakes and feel that this book was exceptionally edited.
******
Hard Knocks: Memoir of a Small Moment
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Hard Knocks had me feeling emotions I haven't felt in a long time. Ray, the author, did a great job writing this book and truly pulling your attention.
He begins by detailing his family history before starting his own story as a baby, which helps identify characters in future chapters. Even though I had never heard of Ray Lopez before reading this, it was very intriguing and captivating to read everything he went through as he grew from his own point of view. He does jump around a little bit here and there and I would get lost for a second and backtrack to make sure I didn't miss anything. Some chapters start at a different time than the previous chapter ended, but once I figured that out it was easy to jump back in and follow along.
He details how he struggled with not just feelings and anger at a young age but also with substances. Which eventually led to school issues, gang violence, and a short stint locked up. He also talks about the moments he had a more strained relationship with his mom and about losing his grandfather. He also recounts his different relationships with piers and friends and how some of them deeply affected his life.
He shares about his time in a mental hospital which ended up helping him in ways that I did not expect. There are a few moments when he is in the hospital that threw me off a little bit. He referenced himself as God. I do believe the experiences he recounts in his writing but feel that since he was in the hospital on medication, that's why he referred to himself in this way.
Ray's retelling of his life is quite inspiring and motivating, learning how he struggled and how he didn't always handle it the best, but was still able to find himself and find God. I enjoyed his love story with his wife Paula, how they knew each other as children, and how he finished his book with them starting their lives together. A lot of his history sounds like it came straight out of a fictional book or movie! It was very cool to learn that a lot of what happens in fiction does happen in real life.
I will warn you that this is not kid-appropriate and may be appropriate for young adults and up. Sex, drugs, and violence are a big part of his history. Chapter 23 gets quite graphic in a different way than previous chapters, I had difficulty reading it but appreciated that it was a short chapter. If you don't like sexual violence, I would skip this chapter if you can be sensitive like me. I love how he added his own poems in some of his chapters and Bible verses at the end of each chapter that relate to his stories.
I would rate this book a 5 out of 5 and highly recommend this read! I did not find any grammar mistakes and feel that this book was exceptionally edited.
******
Hard Knocks: Memoir of a Small Moment
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Hard Knocks: Memoir of a Small Moment by Ray Lopez
