"Young Claude is being raised by his grandma in Chicago's changing South Shore, and folks in his life--his parents, friends, neighbors--are disappearing. There's little he can count on besides his grandma, her friend Paul, and his not-quite girlfriend Janice. The violence that was once at a safe distance is now on their doorstep, with corrupt and racist police coming from one direction and the Redbelters gang from the other. It's hard not to imagine Claude wanting to escape, too, but trouble is likely to follow, even to college in Missouri. Told in episodic bursts and filled with emotional resonance, Everywhere You Don't Belong is a powerful coming-of-age debut that will stick with you."
--Daniel Goldin, Boswell Book Company, Milwaukee, WI