Fatou

Book excerpt: Twelve year old Fatou travels from West Africa to America thinking she's furthering her education. Yet, she arrives in New York City greeted by a man three times her age-someone from her village who paid dowry to be her husband. Suffering through pedophiles, deplorably cruel living conditions, and slave life job eventual pushes over the edge. Fatou refuses to be a victim and exerts control of her life by becoming part of Harlem's fast money scene. This fast paced novel examines what happens when the bonds of family and tradition fall apart. And its shows how a strong and fearless woman can hold her own surrounded by grimey men in the dangerous drug game.