Everything Will Be All Right
Selected Book Details
- Hardcover
- Edition: 2
- Author: Douglas Wallace
- Publisher: Greenleaf Book Group Press
- Release Date: October 2009
- ISBN-10: 1608320049
- ISBN-13: 9781608320042
- List Price: $21.95
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Summaries and Customer Reviews provided by Amazon
SummaryAbused by an alcoholic, unemployed father, Doug Wallace and his seven siblings barely survived childhood--fleeing in the night from landlords, scrambling for food, and burning down the only home they ever owned to collect insurance money. In this raw testimony of a heart-breaking, hardscrabble childhood, Doug Wallace paints an unforgettable portrait of a child determined to free himself from the cycle of poverty that strangled his family for generations. With a genuine voice and a keen eye on the class divide in America, the author unflinchingly reveals the painful experiences of class prejudice and life on the fringes of society. Separated from the haves by his poverty and from the have-nots by his desire for more, Wallace learns to use every person, every situation, and every encounter to realise his dream and serve his community. This book empowers readers to overcome any obstacle through tenacious will, relentless drive, and indomitable faith. |
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Inspiring, Motivating--a Must Read
Rating:
Doug Wallace gives ample evidence that the chain of poverty and failure can be broken. His faith comes through loud and clear. He does an excellent job of showing how one choice leads to another and another. Every person who has used excuses and alibis for staying in the midst of their problems rather than solving them should read this book. Every young person going through a troubled youth should read this book. It offers hope. It shows that actions are necessary and one should never, never, never quit. Having grown up in Stewart County, TN, I appreciate his descriptions of the natural beauty of "home." Knowing something of East Nashville in the '60s, Doug paints an accurate picture. Through it all, Doug doesn't hold bitterness or malice toward others. He shares good memories, too. It's an easy, quick read and provides much food for thought.
It will change the way you view your life.
Rating:
We've all had those experiences where we knew everything would have been all right, had it not been for [fill in the blank]. Douglas Wallace has shown that in fact there aren't any blanks to be filled in--we are the only ones who can control our lives and our souls. It isn't easy, especially when many of our peers start off with numerous advantages. But we each make choices every day that will determine our long-term trajectory. And almost universally, choosing the more difficult course leads one closer to ultimate success.
A book with this message would seem predestined to come off as preachy or, worse, insufferable. But more than anything it is a fascinating story that keeps you turning the pages to be sure the author gets the rewards you know he deserves (this is quite a literary feat, as we know from the jacket cover that he becomes wildly successful).
Not only is this a great read, but it will change the way you view your daily challenges--rather than using them as an excuse for things going wrong, you can use them to create success in other areas. I only wish I could give it seven stars!
Everything Will be All Right
Rating:
Douglas Wallace knows what it is to be poor. Not just poor, but devastatingly, hopelessly, mind numbingly poor. Not knowing where the next meal would come from, never knowing if the place you slept last night would be the place you sleep tonight, and doing whatever it took - whatever it took - to survive. Generation after generation of the Wallace family existed in an endless cycle of poverty, cruelty and violence.
The short version of his story is that he got out and became a millionaire. The longer version, told in his book tells a tale of "living on the razor's edge of survival." In his memoir he imparts the wisdom he gained from his experiences in the "depths of generational poverty" and tells how he broke the chains that bound him to this way of life.
Wallace's turning point came in the third grade, when he was asked what he wanted to be when he grew up. His answer of "Lawyer" began a ripple of laughter and whispering throughout his class. A friend explained to him that he could not afford college, and that was the first time he ever considered that there might be limitations on ambitions. He went to talk to his principal who encouraged him to "establish realistic goals" and consider farming.
"Like acid on copper, the whole episode is etched in memory," he said. "I knew then that if I were to have a life, if I were to look beyond my circumstances, I would have to make it happen on my own." Wallace's awakening, and source of strength, came through a spiritual experience in which he first encountered the phrase that would dominate his emergence from poverty.
"One night in the woods, I saw an immensely bright and comforting light, and I heard the words, `Everything will be all right,'" Wallace said. "I couldn't see anyone there, but I heard the words plain as day, and I knew they were meant for me. Those words comforted me and showed me the way when I was feeling lost."
Growing up in the ghettos of Nashville was no easy task, either, with violence not just part of the culture, but rather, a way of life. Eventually, the threats of violence at his high school forced him to drop out and join the Job Corps, which offered young people education, job training, career counseling and the opportunity to earn a GED.
Wallace graduated from the Corps at an accelerated pace and entered the University of Wisconsin with a complete financial aid package. After making the mistake of dropping a class he did not enjoy, Wallace was no longer considered a full time student. The military spared no time in drafting him. He spent his 21st birthday in Korea working as a company clerk.
Upon his return to the States, Wallace found full time work and enrolled in college at night. He supported his family to the best of his ability, even taking his younger brother under his wing and into his home. He encouraged his brother to go to college and was very proud when he seemed to be doing well.
Wallace applied to and was accepted to Woodrow Wilson College of Law in the fall of 1973, and began a journey that ended with him selling his legal firm to Synovus, making him a multi-millionaire. It was a journey almost arrested before it began by the callous words of his school principal. But Wallace would not be crushed and he would not be turned from his path by cruel words. "His words would have crushed most boys' dreams forever," he wrote in his memoir. "But I was lucky. They didn't come near to where my soul resides."
The fight for freedom from the strangle hold of generational poverty
Rating:
Reviewed by Richard R. Blake for Reader Views (9/09)
"Everything Will Be All Right," Douglas Wallace's memoir, has given me a whole new perception of the reality and emotional scars of alcoholism, abuse, and violence resulting from life in the streets, with the accompanying cycle of generational poverty. Born into poverty in the rural South, the Wallace family moved from one small town in the backwoods of upstate Tennessee to another, as their alcoholic father drifted from job to job. In 1955 Doug's father uprooted his family to move to an industrial neighborhood in Granite City, Illinois in hopes of increased employment opportunities.
The familiar patterns of frequent job changes and rental evictions did not change. The family soon moved back to Tennessee and ultimately settled in East Nashville. Wallace, the third born of the eight Wallace children, reveals the lessons he learned and the social dynamics which are determined from the environment, the streets of East Memphis, the deplorable conditions of the massive government housing projects, and the danger and risk of showing fear. Wallace stated it this way, "I acted like a tough street kid, but inside I was a scared person desperately wanting out of the environment." He told of his disappointment when his older brother was forced to drop out of high school to help support the family because of the devastating poverty and a despicable alcoholic father, who couldn't hold a job to support his family.
At the age of twelve on the way home from a visit with his brother to a local church "revival," Doug had a religious experience that impacted his life. From that point forward he often heard and responded to an inner voice assuring him, "Everything Will Be All Right." Early in his childhood he purposed with determination to become an attorney. He never lost this vision. Doug candidly recounts the struggles he faced as he persevered in following his dream to fruition.
Wallace's writing conveys the close-knit bonding of deep family ties and of his loyalty to a caring mother. His suffered the discomfort, difficulty, determination, and personal sacrifice to adjust to the expected norms of a middle-class society. This embarrassment was yet another hurdle Doug had to overcome in the discovery and formation of his personal identity. He served in the Army in Viet Nam. Later he took a full-time job and college night classes. These challenges were only a part of Wallace's journey to fulfilling his dream of becoming a licensed attorney.
Doug chose to write his story of growing up in poverty in an effort to call attention to the unimaginable hardships for the generationally impoverished. It is his hope that his story will influence his readers to overcome the seeming insurmountable obstacles they face with the same resolute will, unrelenting drive, and indomitable faith that empowered him.
"Everything Will Be All Right" turns circumstances to vision, vision to purpose, purpose to perseverance, and perseverance to accomplishment. Douglas Wallace's story is disturbing and unforgettable with an inspiring message of hope for any one struggling to raise themselves above their circumstances.
Simply Fantastic!
Rating:
I pre-ordered this book weeks ago, and was so excited to get it TWO WEEKS before the actual publication date! Set against the backdrop of America in the 1960's, this book is the story of one boy's escape from destitution in the hills of Tenneessee. The author skillfully weaves his story through the upheaval of the Civil Rights Movement, the assassinations of Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr., the war protests, and the rise of the boomer generation. This unique moment in history only serves to add poignancy to his quest: he is a boy desperate for stability during a time of radical change. This is truly a must-read.
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