This first-person narrative begins in the early 1960s when the author's father unexpectedly disappears, plunging the family into poverty. Faced with inner-city violence, her mother's failing health, and institutionalized racism, her bitterness deepens. But when a violin enters her life, she experiences the stirrings of hope. In a series of funny and tender episodes, the author shares the many struggles she faces on the road to her dreams. Young...