Imani All Mine

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Summary: Teachers and Parents Beware
Review: Although highly touted, this book does contain a graphic rape scene and language some may find to be offensive or inappropriate for younger readers.

Rating:
Summary: Brians review for a good book well written
Review: Conny Porter has out done her self with this book. As a male it's hard to relate to some of the situations in the book, but she makes it clear. I think this book should be read by all teenagers because it reflects alot on society today.

Rating:
Summary: Captivating! A must read!
Review: I just finished reading Imani all Mine, this book was awesome. I laughed and cried with Tasha. I commend Ms. Porter on her outstanding novel. Tasha was such a strong person on the outside, but I loved her "little girl" side as well. This is a MUST read. Much success and blessings to Ms. Porter.

Rating:
Summary: Very moving
Review: I just finished reading this book for a course at my college. It is the first book that made me cry. Tasha's story (told through Black English/Ebonics) is very down to Earth and it gives the reader an inside look to poverty in Black America. Teenage pregnancy has taken a backseat to other issues but is still an important problem. Imani All Mine shows that some teen mothers battle through poverty, pain, and the loss of child to try to make something of themselves. I recommend this book to everyone and I promise you won't be disappointed.

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Summary: First rate character study - touching and real.
Review: I loved this book and couldn't put it down from page one. Tasha was so real, empathetic, and totally absorbing. Her tragic story is of a teen mother of the innercity has an universality that touches all. Her struggle to do the right thing for herself and her baby make her an admirable heroine of the first order. Her pride makes her so typical of so many with so little, she is so human. Ms. Porter has successfully created an unforgettable American tragedy that is behind today's headlines. I recommend this to all who care about why the violence and crime of the innercity is so rampant. It puts a very human face to a very common yet unique life. As Steinbeck did for the Okies of the Dustbowl - Porter gives us Tasha and Imani, victims of life in the projects today. Oprah needs to find this book.

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Summary: A Child Raising A Child
Review: Imani All Mine is a compelling piece of literature that you will not want to end. It is told through the eyes of a 15 year old girl trying to raise her daughter, while she is still only a child herself. Connie Porter takes into account the normal adolescent difficulties that Tasha faces while still managing a child. Tasha is also surrounding by many other characters who keep the story alive. Her harsh but loving mother, her drunk neighbor with the drug dealing son, and her first love. These people live in the same neighborhood as Tasha, a neghborhood filled with poverty, drugs, and violence. Trying to raise a child in this atmosphere is not an easy task but Tasha handles it with pride and keeps on going, even when things keep on going wrong. How she comes about having a child in the first place is a story all on its own. All of this and much more is what keeps the reader so interested and not wanting to put the book down. It is a must read for teenagers and adults alike.

Rating:
Summary: good book except for the ending
Review: Imani all mine is a great book based on real life situations. It will keep you reading without putting the book down. Connie Porter Author of the best selling book All Bright Court, gives great details on how a 14-year-old girl lives with being a parent to a newborn baby.
Natasha lives with her mother in a very poor neighborhood in Buffalo N.Y that is all ways asking for trouble. Going threw tough times raising a baby Natasha's best friends Ebony and Peanut help her during a time were everything's going wrong. Raising a baby and going to school is very hard especially with a mother who wont help with the baby because of a new relationship with a white man. Mrs. Odetta the town gossip delivers all the good and bad news even if you don't want to hear it. With her son June bug the biggest drug dealer in town always coming around nobody ever feels safe even in their own home. This book will make you laugh, and cry as Natasha tells a story with an ending that will have you surprised.
The Author used many literary elements such as a great theme for example. I think the book has a great message, which is never give up even though you feel like the worst is yet to come. Foreshadowing was a great literary element that was used also. Living in such a bad place you can only guess what's coming next, by the clues given and the stories before the bad happened. The Author used great Characterization that explained what the characters looked like and their personality. The Author explained Natasha as a 14 yr old black girl with great grades, who's never been to church, and who's a mother at a young age. The author uses great detail making each person different.
What I didn't like about the book was the ending it was too sudden and you weren't able to guess about what was going to happen when it did. I did like the fact that what happened changed everyone. They all started worrying about other people then themselves. I loved the book and I think it will teach everyone a lot. Just when you think your life is bad just think it could be worse.

Rating:
Summary: Thought Provoking!
Review: Imani is the name of the child that "the teenage"Tasha gives birth to. The book is narrated by Tasha, who tells you the trials of been a teenage mother. In the beginning of this book I told myself this was going to be a typical story of a black pregnant teen but I was totally wrong. The book gets real with Tasha sharing about how she became pregnant and having to deal with the shame because of it, her having to keep up with her school work while trying to take care of her child. She speaks about the other characters in her life like the
tumultuous relationship with her mother, having a best friend Eboni (who is also pregnant) Eboni's mother Ms. Lovey who sometimes serves as Tasha surrogate mother
when her own mother was unable to give Tasha the love she felt she needed
and the boy Tasha begins to "date" Peanut (his nickname)This book shows
the realism of the inner city tragedy of pregnant teen and the continuation of the cycle. It is also a book about hope, sadness, perseverance and redemption. Readers beware that this books have twist and turns that you would not have expected . In my opinion this book became more sadder in the end but a story that definitely needed to be told. Excellent writing.



Rating:
Summary: Pull out the box of tissue
Review: Let me start off by saying Ms. Porter did a WONDERFUL job with this book. Me and my mother both read this book and cried like a baby at the end. This book was very touching. In the beginning we are introduced to Tasha who finds herself a mother while in high school. Tasha isn't your average teenager. She wants more to life for her baby (Imani) and herself. She wants more than what the streets has to offer you (which is a bullet in your head, or crack in your mouth). Tasha is a very bright young woman that loves her baby so much. Imani actually keeps Tasha sane in a crazy world. From the time you find out Imani's daddy to Tasha dealing with her own demons you are hooked on this book. I thought Tasha's momma didn't really care to much for Imani AT FIRST. But by the end of the book you will see just how much she really cared for her. This book deals with the hard truth of loving someone more that you love yourself. It deals with the day to day struggle of raising a child on your own without being old enough to even have a job. It deals with having dreams bigger than what your eyes can see and reaching for your goals higher than the stars. I really enjoyed this book, but I was frozen at the end. I sat on my bed a cried to the very end. It was a touching and caring book about love and death and moving on. GREAT JOB!

Rating:
Summary: VERY Good Book!
Review: Tasha Dawson (the main character) is the voice of a generation ... of teenage mothers living in the ghetto. Everything she says is honest and realistic. Rather than being stereotypical, Tasha is written with a lot of dimensions and is anything but a cardboard cutout. I liked most of the characters in this book and all the situations were believeable and heartrening.

This book left me in tears. Surpisingly, this was also a pageturner. I couldn't put it down.