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Bed Stuy
From the author of Dear Marcus comes a breathtaking novel about a fated love affair that crosses the divides of race and class.
Rashid is a young Black man from Bed Stuy, Brooklyn, with a complicated life. Looking for an escape from a neighborhood few ever leave, he finds it in Rachel—married, twenty years his senior, and the daughter of a Holocaust survivor. It begins with a flirtation and a tryst. It becomes an intense romance, exhilarating and enriching, that defies the expectations of Rashid’s friends and family. What draws Rachel to Rashid is his curiosity, his need for intimacy, and his adoration—everything lacking in her crumbling marriage. But as the fault lines of their relationship become more prevalent, so do the inevitable choices one makes when falling in love.
Rashid is a young Black man from Bed Stuy, Brooklyn, with a complicated life. Looking for an escape from a neighborhood few ever leave, he finds it in Rachel—married, twenty years his senior, and the daughter of a Holocaust survivor. It begins with a flirtation and a tryst. It becomes an intense romance, exhilarating and enriching, that defies the expectations of Rashid’s friends and family. What draws Rachel to Rashid is his curiosity, his need for intimacy, and his adoration—everything lacking in her crumbling marriage. But as the fault lines of their relationship become more prevalent, so do the inevitable choices one makes when falling in love.
207 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 1, 2021
844 people are currently reading
2887 people want to read
About the author
Jerry McGill
11 books40 followersJerry McGill is a writer and artist. He received a BA in English literature from Fordham University in the Bronx and a master’s degree in education from Pacific University in Oregon. He lives in Portland, Oregon.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 184 reviews
November 3, 2021
What a messed up story.
Over all I like the story but I could have done without the profanity and the use of the N word. Call me a prude but the story could have been a lot better without all of that. Plus it seemed one sided. Only the black characters were using profanity. Like it was to show they didn't have any class.
Dont get me started with the narrative that black people dont like classical music and watch broadway shows. SMH.
All the stereotypical situations were annoying as well.
The end of the book tried to come off like some cautionary tale but it just fell flat.
I guess over all I didnt like this book all that much. It was meh.
Over all I like the story but I could have done without the profanity and the use of the N word. Call me a prude but the story could have been a lot better without all of that. Plus it seemed one sided. Only the black characters were using profanity. Like it was to show they didn't have any class.
Dont get me started with the narrative that black people dont like classical music and watch broadway shows. SMH.
All the stereotypical situations were annoying as well.
The end of the book tried to come off like some cautionary tale but it just fell flat.
I guess over all I didnt like this book all that much. It was meh.
December 1, 2021
An involving, decidedly "unHallmarkish" love story for grownups who realize that relationships sometimes take work, and that happily-ever-afters are not always guaranteed.
April 11, 2022
Bed Stuy calls itself a love story, but it doesn't read that way. Rashid is obsessed with Rachel, despite - or because of - their incompatible circumstances. They can't be together the way he wants, but he can't get enough of her.
Of course it doesn't work out. It's hard to say whether the breakup happens early in the book or near its end, in part because there are several breakups and in part because the timeline is fractured in a way that doesn't feel deliberate. We spend most of the book not with Rachel and Rashid as a couple but with Rashid alone, moving through the city, interacting with his friends and family members and reflecting on their political views and lifestyles. We watch Rashid grow in his career, evolve in his relationships with others, and eventually find a girlfriend with whom he might actually build a life.
All of this left me wondering about the title. Rashid grew up in Bed Stuy and lives there at the start of the novel, but he spends most of his time elsewhere. He traverses New York City, from Prospect Park to Midtown, but although these neighborhoods are mentioned I didn't get much of a sense of place.
And then there's the subtitle: a love story. But, whose? Surely not Rachel's. Perhaps it's Rashid's love for the neighborhood of origin we see so little of. Or perhaps, more optimistically, this is the prequel to the story of how Rashid grew into a man who could, someday, truly love someone else.
Of course it doesn't work out. It's hard to say whether the breakup happens early in the book or near its end, in part because there are several breakups and in part because the timeline is fractured in a way that doesn't feel deliberate. We spend most of the book not with Rachel and Rashid as a couple but with Rashid alone, moving through the city, interacting with his friends and family members and reflecting on their political views and lifestyles. We watch Rashid grow in his career, evolve in his relationships with others, and eventually find a girlfriend with whom he might actually build a life.
All of this left me wondering about the title. Rashid grew up in Bed Stuy and lives there at the start of the novel, but he spends most of his time elsewhere. He traverses New York City, from Prospect Park to Midtown, but although these neighborhoods are mentioned I didn't get much of a sense of place.
And then there's the subtitle: a love story. But, whose? Surely not Rachel's. Perhaps it's Rashid's love for the neighborhood of origin we see so little of. Or perhaps, more optimistically, this is the prequel to the story of how Rashid grew into a man who could, someday, truly love someone else.
February 25, 2022
I am not one for romance as a general rule but this was different, not your average romance. This is not all lovey dovey, there aren’t sickly declarations of love, neither is this funny. This is gritty. This is real life romance in my humble opinion.
Whilst this is certainly a love story it is also about race and class. It’s about life’s struggles from both sides.
We have two central characters: one a middle aged, white, well off, Jewish woman, and the other a young, black man from the Projects in New York City. As you can imagine their relationship is not to be an easy one, in part because the woman is also married!
The writing was original, to me anyway, and it flowed really well. It felt for the most part pretty natural dialogue, although I am not entirely sure how a young black man from New York talks, sometimes that sounded a little clichéd at times, the use of the word nigga was a bit uncomfortable for me too but perhaps that is the way it is over there. However overall the writing was great, the story unraveled at a nice pace as we got to know our characters and their lives better. Our protagonist (the man) was certainly engaging and I think they all had more depth than those in the romance novels I have read in the past.
This is a tragic love story, brutally honest; love is cruel and can be like an addiction destroying all in its wake. Real love we are told is heartache.
A gripping read which from a non romance fan is high praise indeed. I cannot believe I am giving this 5*/5, but it deserves it.
Whilst this is certainly a love story it is also about race and class. It’s about life’s struggles from both sides.
We have two central characters: one a middle aged, white, well off, Jewish woman, and the other a young, black man from the Projects in New York City. As you can imagine their relationship is not to be an easy one, in part because the woman is also married!
The writing was original, to me anyway, and it flowed really well. It felt for the most part pretty natural dialogue, although I am not entirely sure how a young black man from New York talks, sometimes that sounded a little clichéd at times, the use of the word nigga was a bit uncomfortable for me too but perhaps that is the way it is over there. However overall the writing was great, the story unraveled at a nice pace as we got to know our characters and their lives better. Our protagonist (the man) was certainly engaging and I think they all had more depth than those in the romance novels I have read in the past.
This is a tragic love story, brutally honest; love is cruel and can be like an addiction destroying all in its wake. Real love we are told is heartache.
A gripping read which from a non romance fan is high praise indeed. I cannot believe I am giving this 5*/5, but it deserves it.
November 3, 2021
Breathtakingly beautiful
Starting this book, it's a jumbled, nervous first date info dump. This time when I was a kid, no, yesterday, years ago, today. It's a lot to take in, but effectively sets up the world of the book for the steadier flow of the rest of the tale.
A love story? Yes, but richer and deeper and so much more. With observations on race, class, life choices, and a range of colors and sexual preferences, the world within veers between harsh ugliness to moments of breathtaking beauty, as shown here:
"...he was concluding that it was okay. Love did not need to be all or nothing; it was not a zero-sum game. Love was a lot like one of those gorgeous symphonies Rachel had introduced him to. There were gradations and fluctuations, crescendos, crests, fortissimo, and eventually, at some point, the inevitable diminuendo. No movement lasted forever, but the really special ones reverberated through time and rested in your bloodstream as long as you breathed."
No character is a cardboard cutout, they're rich and true to themselves, for good or bad. I was reading watching my time left in the bottom of the screen in a mild panic, because I didn't want the book to finish. Highly recommend.
Starting this book, it's a jumbled, nervous first date info dump. This time when I was a kid, no, yesterday, years ago, today. It's a lot to take in, but effectively sets up the world of the book for the steadier flow of the rest of the tale.
A love story? Yes, but richer and deeper and so much more. With observations on race, class, life choices, and a range of colors and sexual preferences, the world within veers between harsh ugliness to moments of breathtaking beauty, as shown here:
"...he was concluding that it was okay. Love did not need to be all or nothing; it was not a zero-sum game. Love was a lot like one of those gorgeous symphonies Rachel had introduced him to. There were gradations and fluctuations, crescendos, crests, fortissimo, and eventually, at some point, the inevitable diminuendo. No movement lasted forever, but the really special ones reverberated through time and rested in your bloodstream as long as you breathed."
No character is a cardboard cutout, they're rich and true to themselves, for good or bad. I was reading watching my time left in the bottom of the screen in a mild panic, because I didn't want the book to finish. Highly recommend.
January 7, 2022
This book was an easy read, but it was not the most interesting book. Also, I felt as if the characters were pretty surface level. I wanted to learn more about Rashid and his background. I feel like he did not have strong opinions or beliefs and I wanted to learn more about his interests and what he stood for.
Rachel was also pretty annoying to me. The portrayal of their interracial relationship did not work for me, she was demanding and uppity. Perhaps that was the author's whole point, but I just did not believe in their love story.
The allusion to Icarus towards the end of the novel seemed forced and it felt as if the author was trying too hard. The reference was unnecessary and just added to my belief that the novel had potential, but fell short.
Hated the ending. I wonder if Jerry McGill wanted readers to interpret the ending for themselves, but I felt like it was a cop-out ending. My review might make the novel sound unappealing, but it was a short and easy read so I gave it 3 stars. However, the characters were not complex, full-bodied characters and the plot was predictable.
Rachel was also pretty annoying to me. The portrayal of their interracial relationship did not work for me, she was demanding and uppity. Perhaps that was the author's whole point, but I just did not believe in their love story.
The allusion to Icarus towards the end of the novel seemed forced and it felt as if the author was trying too hard. The reference was unnecessary and just added to my belief that the novel had potential, but fell short.
Hated the ending. I wonder if Jerry McGill wanted readers to interpret the ending for themselves, but I felt like it was a cop-out ending. My review might make the novel sound unappealing, but it was a short and easy read so I gave it 3 stars. However, the characters were not complex, full-bodied characters and the plot was predictable.
October 12, 2022
This is not a typical love story. Two people who could not be more different fall passionately in love despite knowing "forever" is something they will never have.
Rashid is 22 and Black. He grew up in poverty in the projects of Bedford-Stuyvesant (Bed-Stuy) in Brooklyn, New York. His only cocky, unrepentant brother is in prison for shooting someone in broad daylight with lots of witnesses. His mother loves her boys but has her problems, so they didn't get the kind of attention they needed growing up. His father died long ago for a drug overdose. Rashid happily works as a server at an Italian restaurant, but he's confused about his future.
Rachel is 42, White, privileged, Jewish, and wealthy. She's also unhappily married with two children. She lives primarily in Boston where she is a professional flutist, but visits her mother, a bitter, angry Holocaust survivor and successful sculptor, who lives in a pricey apartment on the Upper East Side. Rachel has a problem beyond her crumbling marriage—a big one—and it's not long before Rashid figures it out.
Rashid and Rachel meet at the restaurant where he works, and it is lust at first sight. The lust turns into an intense and fervent love, but their undercover relationship is difficult, hurtful, and filled with struggles. At the heart of the novel is this question: What choices do we make when we fall in love…and break up? And how do those choices affect us for the rest of our life?
In addition, this is a coming-of-age story for Rashid, who emerges from his disadvantaged youth in the projects to a hope for the future that goes far beyond crime and drugs. It's a love story about those who reach out to guide him on this perilous journey, as well as a love story of self as he embraces who he is meant to be.
But more than anything, this is a book about romantic love—about learning how to love and learning how to be loved. Still, while this novel has a captivating storyline and characters that are bold and brilliant, at times it can feel a bit contrived and forced. Rachel and Rashid each have their parts to play—poor, floundering Black kid and rich Jewish professional—and that mold just feels too tight and artificial at times.
Rashid is 22 and Black. He grew up in poverty in the projects of Bedford-Stuyvesant (Bed-Stuy) in Brooklyn, New York. His only cocky, unrepentant brother is in prison for shooting someone in broad daylight with lots of witnesses. His mother loves her boys but has her problems, so they didn't get the kind of attention they needed growing up. His father died long ago for a drug overdose. Rashid happily works as a server at an Italian restaurant, but he's confused about his future.
Rachel is 42, White, privileged, Jewish, and wealthy. She's also unhappily married with two children. She lives primarily in Boston where she is a professional flutist, but visits her mother, a bitter, angry Holocaust survivor and successful sculptor, who lives in a pricey apartment on the Upper East Side. Rachel has a problem beyond her crumbling marriage—a big one—and it's not long before Rashid figures it out.
Rashid and Rachel meet at the restaurant where he works, and it is lust at first sight. The lust turns into an intense and fervent love, but their undercover relationship is difficult, hurtful, and filled with struggles. At the heart of the novel is this question: What choices do we make when we fall in love…and break up? And how do those choices affect us for the rest of our life?
In addition, this is a coming-of-age story for Rashid, who emerges from his disadvantaged youth in the projects to a hope for the future that goes far beyond crime and drugs. It's a love story about those who reach out to guide him on this perilous journey, as well as a love story of self as he embraces who he is meant to be.
But more than anything, this is a book about romantic love—about learning how to love and learning how to be loved. Still, while this novel has a captivating storyline and characters that are bold and brilliant, at times it can feel a bit contrived and forced. Rachel and Rashid each have their parts to play—poor, floundering Black kid and rich Jewish professional—and that mold just feels too tight and artificial at times.
March 25, 2022
A decent read, but not one I'd revisit.
November 6, 2021
I absolutely loved this tale of an interracial affair between a young black guy and older white woman. It was so captivating and heartbreaking all at the same time.
I love reading about NYC and was drawn to this book because of the name Bed Stuy, a nickname for the neighborhood in Brooklyn, Bedford–Stuyvesant. I loved learning more about the famous neighborhood and its inhabitants.
I highly recommend!!
I love reading about NYC and was drawn to this book because of the name Bed Stuy, a nickname for the neighborhood in Brooklyn, Bedford–Stuyvesant. I loved learning more about the famous neighborhood and its inhabitants.
I highly recommend!!
January 4, 2022
I loved this book. I loved the perspective. I loved the male POV. It was sensitive but still masculine. I enjoyed this book where a young man finds himself worthy of love and ambition on his own terms.
November 18, 2021
Book cover a bit misleading, wonderful, smart, educational novel
Loved this novel. As a white woman, who thinks of myself as an anti racism, equality for all, BLM supporter, this novel really put my privilege into perspective. I highlighted lord knows how many passages, words, sentences I had never even considered how hundreds of yrs of racism has harmed minorities, generational trauma. This novel had/has me checking my actions, my life for racism, just how I respond to others. I never realized that there are no black romcom tv shows. That blacks are always tv shows where drugs, and violence are the main script. Only family friendly white washed black families make the cut for tv/movies. Why as whites cannot we not just see everyone as people? Why are we so afraid of anyone who doesn't look like our mirror?
Loved this novel. As a white woman, who thinks of myself as an anti racism, equality for all, BLM supporter, this novel really put my privilege into perspective. I highlighted lord knows how many passages, words, sentences I had never even considered how hundreds of yrs of racism has harmed minorities, generational trauma. This novel had/has me checking my actions, my life for racism, just how I respond to others. I never realized that there are no black romcom tv shows. That blacks are always tv shows where drugs, and violence are the main script. Only family friendly white washed black families make the cut for tv/movies. Why as whites cannot we not just see everyone as people? Why are we so afraid of anyone who doesn't look like our mirror?
March 13, 2023
I guess I got distracted when, somewhere in the middle of this book, we read that an attractive woman is "a bonified catch" (uh, you mean "bona fide"?). And that is also about where the storytelling starts to fail for me. For example, we reach a clear turning point on p.159, but then in the next paragraph you'd never know it. It's kind of like "my life has changed completely. Let's go buy groceries." From there, things happen, but they just aren't very well connected. I just finished reading it and I honestly can't tell you how it ends.
In the end, "bonified catch" describes this book pretty accurately: an unsatisfying day of fishing.
In the end, "bonified catch" describes this book pretty accurately: an unsatisfying day of fishing.
March 28, 2022
So bored I had to stop. Didn't even notice how far I got. Just a big nope for me.
October 31, 2025
Undoubtedly one of the best love stories I've ever read. I'm not a romance novel person but I am a romantic person. Romantic in the sense that I experience love in general as the great transformative power in our lives and romantic love as that and more, plus a whole lot of mystery and sexual passion and ecstasy thrown in.
Rashid, the protagonist of "Bed Stuy," is a basically good, kinda aimless brother from Brooklyn whose brother is at Rikers and whose best friend is a philosophies, ethical non-monogamist. From the jump, none of the book's characters are who I expected them to be and turn out to be much more. They're all multidimensional human beings with their own motives and desires and destinies and, at first, Rashid is not even trying to find his, he's just getting by.
Then he falls in love with Rachel -- and it's a world altering, soul shattering love that is both fulfilling and devastating. I won't give any spoilers except to say the obvious -- despite the depth of his emotions, this love ain't built to last. This girl, uh, woman, who is married with two kids has Problems with a capitol "P."
But even though it'll never work out, that doesn't mean he isn't utterly changed by it. And that is what I love about this book -- it takes the reader along on that ride with Rashid -- and reading it I was carried along by all his change and discovery and euphoria and pain.
Audience wise, I don't know who else this book is for but it definitely feels like it was written for me. It's got The Bronx and Brooklyn, it's got an authentically thorny interracial/cross-class love sitch, it's got transracial adoption, chosen family, 9/11, the NYC art scene, Opera, cooking, and an Italian restaurant with owners I wish would adopt me too. Seriously.
Jerry McGill packs so much into so little with masterful economy -- he man can say so much with one well chosen word -- Im just in awe.
I NEVER reread sentences because I like them so much. Thats just not the kind of reader I am -- but I reread some of his. I'm giving this book my highest praise.
And it's crazy because I just randomly picked it up one day at the library when I was in a hurry and I liked the title and cover art. wow.
Rashid, the protagonist of "Bed Stuy," is a basically good, kinda aimless brother from Brooklyn whose brother is at Rikers and whose best friend is a philosophies, ethical non-monogamist. From the jump, none of the book's characters are who I expected them to be and turn out to be much more. They're all multidimensional human beings with their own motives and desires and destinies and, at first, Rashid is not even trying to find his, he's just getting by.
Then he falls in love with Rachel -- and it's a world altering, soul shattering love that is both fulfilling and devastating. I won't give any spoilers except to say the obvious -- despite the depth of his emotions, this love ain't built to last. This girl, uh, woman, who is married with two kids has Problems with a capitol "P."
But even though it'll never work out, that doesn't mean he isn't utterly changed by it. And that is what I love about this book -- it takes the reader along on that ride with Rashid -- and reading it I was carried along by all his change and discovery and euphoria and pain.
Audience wise, I don't know who else this book is for but it definitely feels like it was written for me. It's got The Bronx and Brooklyn, it's got an authentically thorny interracial/cross-class love sitch, it's got transracial adoption, chosen family, 9/11, the NYC art scene, Opera, cooking, and an Italian restaurant with owners I wish would adopt me too. Seriously.
Jerry McGill packs so much into so little with masterful economy -- he man can say so much with one well chosen word -- Im just in awe.
I NEVER reread sentences because I like them so much. Thats just not the kind of reader I am -- but I reread some of his. I'm giving this book my highest praise.
And it's crazy because I just randomly picked it up one day at the library when I was in a hurry and I liked the title and cover art. wow.
January 2, 2022
This is a tragic love story.
One that showcases racial differences and the dissimilarity of the poor and rich.
Shid is a 25 year old black man from the projects who falls in love with a 40 something year old wealthy white, married woman, Rachel.
At first, the affair is exciting as Rachel opens herself up to Shid and shows him there was beauty in letting walls crumble. However, as the relationship evolves, Rachel’s personal struggles are obvious. Rachel is wrapped in red flags from head to toe and wears it like a goddamn armor.
However, Shid is addicted to her madness, her imperfections and struggles. He describes being with Rachel is similar to the high his father had felt from the drug that killed him.
Overall, a really well written book.
One that showcases racial differences and the dissimilarity of the poor and rich.
Shid is a 25 year old black man from the projects who falls in love with a 40 something year old wealthy white, married woman, Rachel.
At first, the affair is exciting as Rachel opens herself up to Shid and shows him there was beauty in letting walls crumble. However, as the relationship evolves, Rachel’s personal struggles are obvious. Rachel is wrapped in red flags from head to toe and wears it like a goddamn armor.
However, Shid is addicted to her madness, her imperfections and struggles. He describes being with Rachel is similar to the high his father had felt from the drug that killed him.
Overall, a really well written book.
November 30, 2021
Full of Life Issues
As the book preview promises, these characters explore a variety of issues we all experience as we try to figure out life. The story is interestingly told through what some would consider an inappropriate love affair, juxtaposed with the inappropriateness of life, which we strive to make appropriate without compromising self. I enjoyed it—an easy one or two day read.
As the book preview promises, these characters explore a variety of issues we all experience as we try to figure out life. The story is interestingly told through what some would consider an inappropriate love affair, juxtaposed with the inappropriateness of life, which we strive to make appropriate without compromising self. I enjoyed it—an easy one or two day read.
July 19, 2022
Strange - I really don't know how to articulate the things I found to be so weird. It seemed to jump within the same time frame, forcing me to re-read quite a bit. Also, I didn't like the many times McGill said, "he'd look back on this time..." "if he had known..." It felt like the story was building to something unexpected that in the end wasn't all that surprising. But, I will say, despite these criticisms, I found the book had quite a bit to ponder. I loved Rashid's cousin, Stacie, too!
January 10, 2022
Really like McGill's writing. Love at its worst and best, laced with humor and grit.
January 14, 2022
This book is beautiful and heartbreaking. It's real and powerful and gets at the heart of everything... What it means to be in love, to have love change you in deep and irrevocable ways, how we recover or don't recover from the ways love wounds us.
March 7, 2025
baby’s first intro to racism, now as a shitty love story!
August 1, 2025
This is a lovely and gorgeously written book about a beautiful young Black man and his adulterous love affair with a troubled older Jewish woman. I’ll be looking for more from this author.
November 17, 2021
The cover of the book says "A Love Story." There is some love and there is some story but it is not a love story.
I didn't vibe super well with this book because of the choppy timeline. It was always very vague about the passage of time or the order in which events occurred. The ending was very abrupt and rushed. For these reasons, I would have rated it 2 stars. However, I bumped it up to 3 because I liked Rashid and the setting/atmosphere.
Books with similar characters/subject matter/setting/general vibes: Rain City Lights, When No One is Watching, All My Mother's Lovers, As Good as True, The Warmest December
I didn't vibe super well with this book because of the choppy timeline. It was always very vague about the passage of time or the order in which events occurred. The ending was very abrupt and rushed. For these reasons, I would have rated it 2 stars. However, I bumped it up to 3 because I liked Rashid and the setting/atmosphere.
Books with similar characters/subject matter/setting/general vibes: Rain City Lights, When No One is Watching, All My Mother's Lovers, As Good as True, The Warmest December
August 9, 2024
It was all just a little... fake. The characters were pretty standard cliches, and it would shoehorn in things like ... "He and Stacie had made a pledge to each other for Black History Month: they would each read at least three books by African American writers over the twenty-eight days of February." Does that seem like a realistic thing that two Black adults would say to each other? Reading books by Black authors just because it's February? Or mentioning things that aren't relevant to the story. I don't know, it's hard to describe. I feel like if you want a story about a relationship that will explore the racism and class and age, you can do that by seeing how those things impact believable, three-dimensional characters, and come to understandings yourself.
January 15, 2024
Beautifully written and very melancholy story about a young black man who falls in love with an older, white, Jewish woman. Not a "romance novel" by any stretch. If you like books that make you think, make you more aware of the human condition and the connections between all of us, and perhaps make you a little sad, this is the book for you.
December 26, 2021
Well Written
I have absolutely nothing in common with the author. Yet he successfully pulled me into his world and I was captivated throughout the book. The story is believable and realistic. And the writing is superb.
I have absolutely nothing in common with the author. Yet he successfully pulled me into his world and I was captivated throughout the book. The story is believable and realistic. And the writing is superb.
September 20, 2022
This is such a well-written book! It's a love story, or so it appears. But for me, it was less a story about love and romance, and more a story on race and race relations, trauma, mental health, self-esteem. Rashid is young black man in his twenties, from Bed Stuy. He lives with his Mum, a single Mom, his Dad died when he was young from drug addiction. He works as a stand-in model for a very rude Jewish woman living in Manhattan, Muriel who berates him and is just plain rude, and there he meets her daughter Rachel, in her forties, married with kids. An affair starts between them, and Rachel introduces her young lover to a life he has never seen, nor experienced before (art, classical music, traveling out of New York for the first time, etc.). I was uncomfortable with the "love story" because it was clear to me that what was going on was not love. Rashid was a boy with such low self-esteem that felt as though he was living just because Rachel told him she wanted him. And Rachel, bless her heart, she was clearly going through a mental breakdown/midlife crisis. It was so clear to me, that I got annoyed at the attempts of the author to make me believe that they were having a beautiful love story against all odds. I was annoyed at Rashid for only having eyes for Rachel due to his low self-esteem, and I was annoyed at Rachel for using him to avoid dealing with her real issues. The side characters were particularly interesting. I was particularly marked by Stacie, Rashid's cousin. I think throughout the book Stacie is the character that pushed Rashid out of his comfort zone, and helped him become who he ended up becoming. Stacie was fierce, against all odds, despite all the lemons life had thrown at her. Rashid's best friend was another one I liked. Their conversations were always humorous and full of lessons. Darnell, Rashid's brother was the one I understood the less. But I understand why the author decided to include his story. This book made me think about trauma and its consequences; it made me analyze deeply the consequences of great crimes against humanity that linger today. It also made me ponder on mental health, addiction, depression. Also, the author did a good job deconstructing masculinity with Rashid's character especially in the environment he grew up in: Rashid cried, Rashid was in love and said it, Rashid did not feel comfortable with violence, etc. Overall, I think it was a very enjoyable read, one I could grab again in the future!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 10, 2023
Once again, this Author has written a thought-provoking story that is definitely not your ordinary Romance Love Story. It is Stunningly penned in the manner of Eloquence that could only come from the Male perspective of Jerry McGill.
The Heart and Soul of "BedStuy" explains an interracial love story between Rashid, and African American male and Rachel, a married Jewish woman, 20 years his senior. With Rashid behind from BedStuy, Brooklyn this novel is a Fascinating whirlwind of a ride composed by this Author. Interestingly, readers learn to see two broken people from two very different Worlds share Love. Nevertheless, any novel from this Exceptional Author cannot be that simple. Within his novels, there will always contain topics to spark superb conversations. Jerry McGill gives examples of that as he mentions several historical events within this novel through his characters. I Loved this Novel. ❤️🔥
Jerry McGill will send your Heart soaring as he goes into his Gorgeous indirect comparisons about Love, Fear, Race, and more than I ever imagined. His Writing is Impeccable if I have not ever said it before...
Yet, the more I reflect on this Novel, I think of Rachel. The revelations of her entire character when Rashid initially meets her. Remember...Two Different Worlds...I really enjoyed the manner of things this Author told through Muriel. Amazing...Then, he Pleasurably Graces readers with an Unforgettable Learning Moment from Ms. Comforti about "Outgrowing A Place." 🌹
"It is a peculiar sensation, this double-consciousness, this sense
of always looking at one's self through the eyes of others...
One feels his two-ness,—an American, a Negro; two souls, two thoughts,
two reconciled strivings; two warring ideals in one dark body."
- W.E.B. Du Bois
The Heart and Soul of "BedStuy" explains an interracial love story between Rashid, and African American male and Rachel, a married Jewish woman, 20 years his senior. With Rashid behind from BedStuy, Brooklyn this novel is a Fascinating whirlwind of a ride composed by this Author. Interestingly, readers learn to see two broken people from two very different Worlds share Love. Nevertheless, any novel from this Exceptional Author cannot be that simple. Within his novels, there will always contain topics to spark superb conversations. Jerry McGill gives examples of that as he mentions several historical events within this novel through his characters. I Loved this Novel. ❤️🔥
Jerry McGill will send your Heart soaring as he goes into his Gorgeous indirect comparisons about Love, Fear, Race, and more than I ever imagined. His Writing is Impeccable if I have not ever said it before...
Yet, the more I reflect on this Novel, I think of Rachel. The revelations of her entire character when Rashid initially meets her. Remember...Two Different Worlds...I really enjoyed the manner of things this Author told through Muriel. Amazing...Then, he Pleasurably Graces readers with an Unforgettable Learning Moment from Ms. Comforti about "Outgrowing A Place." 🌹
"It is a peculiar sensation, this double-consciousness, this sense
of always looking at one's self through the eyes of others...
One feels his two-ness,—an American, a Negro; two souls, two thoughts,
two reconciled strivings; two warring ideals in one dark body."
- W.E.B. Du Bois
October 4, 2022
I picked this book from my Amazon First selection. I live close to the Bed-Stuy section of Brooklyn, so aside from the synopsis, this attracted me to read the story. I found, however, that the book didn't exactly live up to the title and could have been set in just about any inner city. The story is about a Rashid, a young man finding himself and learning about love. The story started out slowly and at the outset, I had a hard time feeling anything for the characters, but the narrative's pace picked up about halfway through. It would have helped, however, if the author had conveyed how much reading time Rashid would have had commuting from Brooklyn to the Bronx and included more in depth discussion about how reading James Baldwin's writing influenced Rashid's development. There are some geographic inaccuracies in the book-- e.g., you can't get to Brooklyn from Staten Island on a subway; trains from NY don't stop in Boston's North Station (either South Station or Back Bay)-- but these don't really take away from the story.
December 30, 2021
Very interesting love story about a young black male and a white woman who doubles his age.
The author did a good job writing the characters, it truly felt like he was much younger than her and that she had lived through more life experiences. He also wrote about the good and bad stuff of each of them which made me feel like I was reading about real people.
The love story was interesting to read, but it did have a lot of back and forth and at times that made it feel repetitive. Not to talk about the cheating that kept happening.
I still don't know how I really feel about the ending though, it felt like it came out of nowhere, but I understand that maybe that was actually the point. In the end I really liked the main character's growth and reading from a male's pov is always something else.
Trigger warning: suicide, drug abuse, cheating.
**Thank you to Goodreads for giving me a copy of this book**
The author did a good job writing the characters, it truly felt like he was much younger than her and that she had lived through more life experiences. He also wrote about the good and bad stuff of each of them which made me feel like I was reading about real people.
The love story was interesting to read, but it did have a lot of back and forth and at times that made it feel repetitive. Not to talk about the cheating that kept happening.
I still don't know how I really feel about the ending though, it felt like it came out of nowhere, but I understand that maybe that was actually the point. In the end I really liked the main character's growth and reading from a male's pov is always something else.
Trigger warning: suicide, drug abuse, cheating.
**Thank you to Goodreads for giving me a copy of this book**
December 8, 2021
The first half of this book is perfection - fully realised characters, interesting developments. It asks the question: What happens when a woman meets a man. And then adds is some complexity - an older woman, younger man. And older Jewish woman, younger Black man. Older wealthy Jewish woman... and so on. It's an own voices story and raises some issues about representation of Black people I hadn't really considered before. The second half is a little more shaky. it's like the author had sketched out the plot, but didn't quite know how to get us there. Still a good, satisfying read, with an interesting ending that I'm still considering. This would make a good book-club book due to the strong themes (race, family, trauma and so on).
Thanks NetGalley for the free e-arc in exchange for this honest review
Thanks NetGalley for the free e-arc in exchange for this honest review
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