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Publisher: NovelBooks,Inc. 
Release Date:
ISBN:  1591050855
Awards: Eppie Finalist 
Format Reviewed: Trade Paperback 
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Genre:  Fiction Novel
Reviewed: 2004
Reviewer: Susan Johnson 
Reviewer Notes:  

Rising from the Ashes
By Michael LaRocca

     Michael LaRocca is the published author of four books, one an Eppie finalist. A North Carolinian raised in Florida, he now lives and teaches in Hingham, China. His book, "Rising from the Ashes" is the story of his youth.

     Michael's youth was a troubled time filled with poverty, loneliness and abuse from the ever-changing succession of his mother's boyfriends and husbands. His mother loved both him and his younger brother and tried very hard to provide for them. Unfortunately, her choices in men were often bad. They lived in poverty and moved frequently to avoid eviction notices.

     Everyone thought Michael was the strange one, that he would be dysfunctional, but as he tells on the back of this wonderful book he outlived both his mother and his brother and goes on to tell this inspirational story.

     I was totally prepared to dislike this book. At the least, I expected it to be depressing . Three pages in, I discovered I was wrong. I found myself rooting for Michael and his family and feeling all their joy and sadness. Not many authors can take me on that journey. A truly inspirational read for all.