What do you think?
Rate this book
Lonely Now
This is a 143 page hardback. Contents Please Help Me!, Man and the Ghetto, I'm Fifteen and Tired of Living, Fear / Frustration and Failure, Straight Sex Stuff, I Always Give in to Temptation, Does Anyone Care?, What's All This Stuff About Jesus?, Am I Behond Help?, My Parents Bug Me, I Am Curious - dead (The Dope on Dope), Let's Turn the World Upside Down. Hardback with dust jacket.
143 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1971
2 people are currently reading
28 people want to read
About the author
Nicky Cruz
68 books119 followersNicky was only 3½ years old when his heart turned to stone. As one of 18 children born to witchcraft-practicing parents from Puerto Rico, bloodshed and mayhem were common occurrences in his life. He suffered severe physical and mental abuse at their hands, at one time being declared the "Son of Satan" by his mother while she was in a spiritual trance.
When he was 15, Nicky's father sent him to visit an older brother in New York. Nicky didn't stay with his brother long. Instead, full of anger and rage, he chose to make it on his own.
Tough, but lonely, by age 16 he became a member of the notorious Brooklyn street gang known as the Mau Maus (named after a bloodthirsty African tribe). Within six months he became their president. Cruz fearlessly ruled the streets as warlord of one of the gangs most dreaded by rivals and police. Lost in the cycle of drugs, alcohol, and brutal violence, his life took a tragic turn for the worse after a friend and fellow gang member was horribly stabbed and beaten and died in Nicky's arms.
As Cruz' reputation grew, so did his haunting nightmares. Arrested countless times, a court-ordered psychiatrist pronounced Nicky's fate as "headed to prison, the electric chair, and hell."
No authority figure could reach Cruz - until he met a skinny street-preacher named David Wilkerson. He disarmed Nicky - showing him something he'd never known before: Relentless love. His interest in the young thug was persistent. Nicky beat him up, spit on him and, on one occasion, seriously threatened his life, yet the love of God remained - stronger than any adversary Nicky had ever encountered.
Finally, Wilkerson's presentation of the gospel message and the love of Jesus melted the thick walls of his heart. Nicky received the forgiveness, love and new life that can only come through Jesus. Since then, he has dedicated that life to helping others find the same freedom.
He reaches today's youth because they relate to his background, trust his peer authority, and respond to the message of hope he delivers with both passion and conviction.
Run Baby Run is Nicky's story in book form.
When he was 15, Nicky's father sent him to visit an older brother in New York. Nicky didn't stay with his brother long. Instead, full of anger and rage, he chose to make it on his own.
Tough, but lonely, by age 16 he became a member of the notorious Brooklyn street gang known as the Mau Maus (named after a bloodthirsty African tribe). Within six months he became their president. Cruz fearlessly ruled the streets as warlord of one of the gangs most dreaded by rivals and police. Lost in the cycle of drugs, alcohol, and brutal violence, his life took a tragic turn for the worse after a friend and fellow gang member was horribly stabbed and beaten and died in Nicky's arms.
As Cruz' reputation grew, so did his haunting nightmares. Arrested countless times, a court-ordered psychiatrist pronounced Nicky's fate as "headed to prison, the electric chair, and hell."
No authority figure could reach Cruz - until he met a skinny street-preacher named David Wilkerson. He disarmed Nicky - showing him something he'd never known before: Relentless love. His interest in the young thug was persistent. Nicky beat him up, spit on him and, on one occasion, seriously threatened his life, yet the love of God remained - stronger than any adversary Nicky had ever encountered.
Finally, Wilkerson's presentation of the gospel message and the love of Jesus melted the thick walls of his heart. Nicky received the forgiveness, love and new life that can only come through Jesus. Since then, he has dedicated that life to helping others find the same freedom.
He reaches today's youth because they relate to his background, trust his peer authority, and respond to the message of hope he delivers with both passion and conviction.
Run Baby Run is Nicky's story in book form.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 14, 2012
This was a quick read--the majority of it is letters sent to Nicky Cruz along with his responses to them. "The Lonely Now" is what he calls the young people who turn to drugs, sex and other things because they're looking for something filling. He begins the book with a couple of chapters explaining how this book came about. He was back in New York, talking to a couple of guys he used to be in a gang with. (Nicky Cruz used to lead a gang, but left that lifestyle when he accepted Jesus, starting with turning all his weapons into the police. A book called Run, Baby, Run tells his story. I haven't read it, but I've heard parts of it.) The guys comment that things have changed since their younger days, and the younger and younger kids are getting hooked on drugs. Apparently, Cruz gets a lot of letters from young people and parents alike asking for help, so he decided to compile a lot of the letters (some anonymous that he couldn't answer by mail) so that more people could benefit from them.
It was a sad read, but also uplifting in his hopeful responses. He ends the book with a chapter about "turning the world upside down" and not settling for anything less than God and not giving up.
It was a sad read, but also uplifting in his hopeful responses. He ends the book with a chapter about "turning the world upside down" and not settling for anything less than God and not giving up.
July 22, 2021
Tårer, glede, fred
March 11, 2017
It was a good book reading me how wonderful god is
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews