Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah

Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah p. 544

Winter Santiaga was raised in Brooklyn projects but in luxury. Her father is a drug lord and provides his family with whatever they want. The inside of their house doesn't resemble project housing at all. They have all the new clothes and expensive jewels. However, she's shielded, as much as she can be, from what her father does. All she knows is there is lots of money for her to spend and her father, Santiaga, won't let anyone disrespect his family. Of course, things like this don't last forever, and when the police come, their world falls apart. Since she's been shielded from so much, she doesn't know what to do.

This is my fifth or sixth time reading this book. Every other time I've read it, I was a teenager. I may have read it once as in my early twenties. This time, when I read it, with the knowledge that I now have, it made me feel differently. I still liked the book, probably even more than I did before. But this time, I got the message. Sister Souljah is not glorifying selling drugs and street life. When you're younger, having clothes and being cool is everything. When you get older you realize that none of that matters. Winter had no common sense. She didn't think school was important so she didn't go. She thought using her body would get her everything she wanted. Reading this book made me feel so embarrassed for her. However, as I said, there are messages the reader can get from reading this book. I would recommend this book.