Rating: 
Summary: an amazing story
Review: I am a Brown graduate and this book helped me to gain some perspective on my undergraduate experiences there. Cedric's story helped me to see that I felt my immigrant, public high school education status when I was a student there but was afraid to admit it. It's thoughtful and Ron Suskind amazingly captures the reality of first-year life at Brown.
Rating:
Summary: A "Hope" for Readers
Review: Suskind beautifully captured the journey and development of one boy from the ghetto to the gateway, so to speak. The words flowed so gracefully detailing Cedric's struggle into young adulthood. I had a difficult time putting the book down-one of the best books that I have ever read! You could practically feel Cedric's frustration and determination jumping out of the pages. Suskind wrote a beautiful piece that can be read by all, black and white, young and old.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book
Review: I think that this is an excellent book about having nothing and being able to turn your life around into something spectacular. I really like how descriptive Suskind is. He is the only writer that I have known who could take a complex hierarchial system such as the one at Ballou High School, and break it down so quickly, and yet so concisely that anyone could grasp how the high schoolers are segregated into different "clicks". Cedric had so many things holding him back that at times you wonder how he survived his childhood and high school life. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a piece that is both very humbling and up lifting: humbling to read about how little Cedric had and up lifting because of how far he was able to go, especially when you throw all the numerous obstacles that littered his path.
Rating: 
Summary: The power of the story prevails
Review: As many other reviews have noted, the basic elements of the story underlying this book are immensely powerful. The journey of Cedric Jennings from dysfunctional inner city schools -- and the broader antagonistic sub-society in which they exist -- to they Ivy League should inspire all of us toward the level of discipline Cedric (and his mother!) have achieved. As told in this book, the story also highlights the many 'filters' on both sides of divide that obstruct the ability of poor black to communicate with affluent white. I recommed this book to anyone who feels indifference welling inside them, and needs to be stirred to action to help make the world a better place.For me, the book was not without flaw, however. I am familiar with a few of the characters in the book from my own past experience. It seemed to me that Suskind was not as completely objective as he claims in the epilogue and acknowledgements at the end of the book. I noticed that Suskind treated some characters dismissively (e.g., Clarence Thomas, Leon Trilling), and it seemed that these were characters who weren't lock step with Suskind's symapthetic view of Cedric's journey. The use of such journalistic license isn't unique to Suskind, of course. It's precisely the use of such license -- to expand more on a character's inner feelings here, to provide less extensive explanations elsewhere, to speculate on motive here while exploring motive more fully elsewhere -- that can be so infruriating to those who are quoted in the newspaper, no matter the subject. Maybe it's for this reason that Suskind's epilogue, in which he expounds upon how his methods ensured objectivity, leaves a feeling that he doth protest too much. In the end, is this a book I'd recommend? Absolutely. The power of the story prevails over it's flaws. It's inspirational and insightful.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Best Books I Ever Read
Review: This is an amazing story of a truly remarkable young man. Cedric's journey is remarkable not just for the journey itself, but for the way in which he made it. The move from the inner city to the Ivy League is one that most of us cannot fathom. But Cedric made it, and made it with a dignity and sence of humor. That does not mean that there were not setbacks or the Cedric did not react with anger or other human emotions to his experiences, but that is also part of the story. While this is a story about race in America, it is also so much more. It is alo about class and educational opprotunity. Suskind makes his points very well but without hitting anyone over the head. Cedric is the "poster boy" for making education equally avaliable to everyone. The sad part of the story is the certainty that there are other Cedrics out there, some who are discussed by Suskind, who did not make it to the Ivy League or any college. When the book end I was disappointed because I wanted to know how Cedric's story ended. Suskind brought the story to life. I only hope that there is a sequal.
Rating:
Summary: Powerful testimony
Review: Ron Suskind's brilliant narration of a young boy's journey into higher, ivy-league education sheds insight into one of the most controversial education debates of today. Suskind does not offer up any answers to how to solve the problem of troubled inner-city schools and whether or not affirmative action is fair and/or effective, but simply weaves together the story of what it is like for Cedric to grow up, and be educated, in one of the country's worst public schools. This book reads like a work of fiction, and pulls you into Cedric and his family's world in Washington DC and beyond. An incredibly inspiring story that challenges the current discussions on how to improve the educational system, sheds light on how even resident's of the nation's capitol often are behind the rest of the country in being able to achieve their goals and dreams. A wonderful read.
Rating:
Summary: very informative
Review: A book of a young man to better himself and the struggles he must face to get to the Ivy League. It begins with a 16 year old named Cedric Jennings, and how he wants more for himself, than a life in the Ghetto and a low paying job. He realizes early in life the importance of a good education. This book takes you through the things he must face to better himself. A lot of bad mixed with good. A very inspirational story that should be read by others as an example of what anyone can do with their life if they try real hard and not give up.
Rating:
Summary: A Worthy Read
Review: My 15-year-old son gave this book to me as a birthday present and I was touched by his gesture. Now that I have read it, I am doubly touched, because Ron Susskind's book is a powerfully moving portrait of an adolescent with tremendous personal integrity who defied significant odds to pursue academic excellence and, ultimately, one hopes, a better life. I would recommend this book to anyone. It is one of the most gratifying birthday presents I have ever received.
Rating: 
Summary: Deserving of a Pulitzer?
Review: My only real compliant with this book is why does it take a white reporter for the Wall Street Journal for this story to be acceptable and validated? I know plenty of students from the inner-city who defy the odds on a daily basis (I am one of those students myself) and it bothers me that it is not until a white person writes this story that our voices get heard. I am sure that there are folks that will argue that at least our stories are getting told and we should be grateful. However, I am concerned about the invisibility of poor and minority folks from the inner city and the politics involved in journalism. Had this story been written by a person of color would it have garnered the same type of public attention? I sincerely doubt it. I applaud Cedric and all of his hard work and dedication. I am just not convinced that Suskind is deserving of a Pulitzer Prize....
Rating:
Summary: some thoughts on hope in the unseen
Review: A Hope in the Unseen is a very powerful book that paints a picture of a world that is all too familiar to some, while quite distant to others. The theme of identity is one that the subject of the book, the author, and even the reader are forced to question and analyze. There are points in the narrative when the author seems very distant from Cedric's (the central character's) life. For example, the author often defines a lot of the slang, and places these words in quotations, which sets aside these narrations from the rest. There were points where, I as the reader, could not fathom Cedric's circumstances or his responses to his circumstances, because of the background I'm from...Part of the magic of this book is that while you are tagging along for the ride of Cedric's journey, as he is struggling to define himself, you cannot help but notice the glaring distance between yourself and the boy, but yet simultaneously, you connect with him. On some level in this book, with some character (It may not be Cedric), you are attracted to a certain thought, or experience, or emotion. And you enter this piece with a new pair of eyes. Ron Suskind succeeded in creating his bridge across such a vast divide. Please read this book.
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