Southside Dreams

by Brenda Hampton

For the Evans family, three generations living together in a desolate neighbourhood in Chicago's south side, life has not turned out the way that their head - Dorothy - dreamed. Now only vodka will numb her pain. Her children seek other ways to deal with life. Danny's a dealer, Regina's after a decent man, and Reginald turns to God. When their cousin Anthony returns from his sixth spell in jail, he's full of rage. He devises a plan to pull the Evans...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1601620314
• ISBN13: 9781601620316
• Release Date: September 2007
• Publisher: Urban Books
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

A page turner for all ages!

I am an avid book reader with a hunger for interesting plots. This book kept my attention day after day until I completed all chapters in a matter of 3 days. It was a definite page turner. Even though this book did not depict the typical southside family, it successfully incorporated realistic with slightly unrealistic which together created a great storyline that kept readers on the edge. For those book readers that like to have some sort of suspense, love for the unknown....waiting on what will happen next....this book is for you. Lay back, sip some soda, eat some chicken wings, and ejoy the Evan's family! Signed, Satisfied Reader

Read for yourself

South Side Dreams is a well written (fictional) story of an extended Chicago family. I recommend this title to anyone interested in reading a realistic fictional novel. Most authors will take their characters through the most dire circumstances yet somehow it all works out in the end. True life dictates otherwise, as does South Side Dreams. I felt for the Evans family, in the same way I would if I had read a news article about a family who had endured many hardships. Reading that stirs emotions, and imagination is as good as it gets.

B.K. Ray is a real talent!

I just could not put this book down!! At the risk of revealing too much of the plot, I'll simply say cop it if you enjoy reading engaging stories by talented authors.

"Dear Dorothy Evans, We regret to inform you..."

I've read this book twice and each time I come away with something new. I loved how the author tackled some very real issues with compassion and humor. The Evan's family isn't just some down and out group of folks with no hopes or dreams, their struggles and triumphs are a testament to any black family USA. For me it was not only a family story but a community one, it opens up our eyes and our hearts to one of the least talked about issues in our community, homosexuality in the black church, and the stigma of Aids, it's a must read for us all.

Finally--real literature about Black people

There are actually people in the ghetto who CANNOT get out. For many outside the ghetto that fact is a dirty secret they think SHOULD not get out. The media maligns the Black poor, political servants ignore them and Black fiction writers either apologize for, ignore, or patronize them. Rarely does an author respect poor, Black people as complete and complex human beings. That's what I thoroughly enjoyed about reading, or rather experiencing, South Side Dreams. It is a beautifully, even lyrically written novel about the Evans family as multi-dimensional individuals, rather than caricatures or odds-defying SuperPeople. This family desperately loves each other, even as they lack the standard social tools to show it or even act on it. The only people they "blame" for the desperation of their lives are themselves and each other. To Anthony, his life is in defiance of "the man," not victimized by him. While matriarch, Dorothy is scrappy, mean and alcoholic, she is also insightful, and through the author's excellent crafting we learn how she came to be; B.K. Ray eschews the overwrought image of strong, big-lapped, Scripture-quoting mamma, in favor of a real and believable woman beaten down by loss and sadness. Her children are far from lazy. Like their mother/aunt, they all have jobs, except daughter Regina who is raising her own children. They also have dreams-especially the universal one of a better life for their children. The characters are developed so intricately, it is impossible to not bond with ALL of them and to come away with a favorite. All are very complete people, each with his/her own compelling story that the writer has woven into a gritty and poignant American novel. There is no need for it to be "inspirational"-unless of course it inspires other authors to dig much deeper when they observe and write about Black people. This is one book you really should not judge by its cover. It's cartoon nature belies the serious literature inside.