Miseducated: My Journey
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- Create Date：2021-06-11 06:19:11
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Brandon P. Fleming
- ISBN：0306925133
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Summary
An inspiring memoir of one man's transformation through literature and debate from a delinquent， drug-dealing dropout to an award-winning Harvard educator -- all by the age of 27。
Brandon Fleming grew up in an abusive home， subject to the brutal rages of his stepfather， a cocaine-addicted Baptist preacher。 Spirit broken， Fleming became a threat to everyone around him。 He was shuffled through school， his passing grades a nod to his skill on the basketball court， not his presence in the classroom。 He turned to the streets， a life of drug deals and violence， saved only by the dream of basketball stardom。
Fleming earned a chance to play for a Division I school。 But when he suffered a career-ending injury during his first semester， he dropped out of college。 He spent the next years toiling on an assembly line， until the depression that stalked him drove him to the edge。 Miraculously， his life was spared。
Returning to college， Fleming was determined to reinvent himself as a scholar -- to replace illiteracy with mastery over language， to go from being ignored and unseen to commanding attention。 He immersed himself in the work of Black thinkers， from the Harlem Renaissance to present day。 Crucially， he found debate， which became the means by which he transformed his life， and the tool he would use to transform the lives of others -- teaching disadvantaged kids to be intrusive in places that are not inclusive， eventually at Harvard University， where he would make champions and history。
Through his personal narrative， readers witness Fleming's personal transformation， self education， and how he takes what he learns about words and power to help others like himself。 Not a "10 steps to personal transformation" or "how to go from the 'hood to Harvard，" Miseducated is an honest personal narrative about resilience， visibility， role models， and overcoming all expectations。
Brandon Fleming grew up in an abusive home， subject to the brutal rages of his stepfather， a cocaine-addicted Baptist preacher。 Spirit broken， Fleming became a threat to everyone around him。 He was shuffled through school， his passing grades a nod to his skill on the basketball court， not his presence in the classroom。 He turned to the streets， a life of drug deals and violence， saved only by the dream of basketball stardom。
Fleming earned a chance to play for a Division I school。 But when he suffered a career-ending injury during his first semester， he dropped out of college。 He spent the next years toiling on an assembly line， until the depression that stalked him drove him to the edge。 Miraculously， his life was spared。
Returning to college， Fleming was determined to reinvent himself as a scholar -- to replace illiteracy with mastery over language， to go from being ignored and unseen to commanding attention。 He immersed himself in the work of Black thinkers， from the Harlem Renaissance to present day。 Crucially， he found debate， which became the means by which he transformed his life， and the tool he would use to transform the lives of others -- teaching disadvantaged kids to be intrusive in places that are not inclusive， eventually at Harvard University， where he would make champions and history。
Through his personal narrative， readers witness Fleming's personal transformation， self education， and how he takes what he learns about words and power to help others like himself。 Not a "10 steps to personal transformation" or "how to go from the 'hood to Harvard，" Miseducated is an honest personal narrative about resilience， visibility， role models， and overcoming all expectations。
Reviews
Steven Ridgely
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Great courage great story
Lacey Mubanga
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As I sit and contemplate my feelings immediately upon finishing this book， my heart is absolutely full， and my eyes are leaking ever so slightly in pure joy。 At the start of this book， I never imagined that I would feel this way， but there it is！ I feel too limited by 5 stars， so I am declaring that it gets 6！tBrandon Fleming’s story is absolutely incredible， but what makes this book truly great is his ability to put such a huge depth of emotion in his words。 I was blown away by his writing and As I sit and contemplate my feelings immediately upon finishing this book， my heart is absolutely full， and my eyes are leaking ever so slightly in pure joy。 At the start of this book， I never imagined that I would feel this way， but there it is！ I feel too limited by 5 stars， so I am declaring that it gets 6！tBrandon Fleming’s story is absolutely incredible， but what makes this book truly great is his ability to put such a huge depth of emotion in his words。 I was blown away by his writing and this is without a doubt the best memoir I have ever read。 I could not possibly explain it in any way that would give it justice， so please just read it。 tMy husband has been telling me the whole time I have been reading and vocalizing my emotions throughout this literary journey that I should be paid for the amount of promoting I am doing for this book。 I do not want that， but I do want every person who is reading this review to go out and buy it when it releases on June 15th！ Buy it for the story， buy it for the education and revealing of world that may or may not look like your own， or buy it for the heartfelt message of loving people where they are at and believing in them when it is possible that no one else does。 tThank you to Hachette and Goodreads for the opportunity to read this book early and to Brandon Fleming for putting your experiences and your heart on to paper。 I cannot praise this book enough！ 。。。more
Sharon Layburn
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A tough read， but ultimately a very inspiring story that deserves to be read。Fleming bares all as he shares this memoir of his toxic childhood， his out of control teen years， his numerous slips into drug use and dealing， and the multiple chances for change and improvement that he let slip out of his fingers。 And yet。。。he eventually found his way。 Literature， history， and debate played a large part in finally putting the renowned Ivy League educator on his current path， where he is currently insp A tough read， but ultimately a very inspiring story that deserves to be read。Fleming bares all as he shares this memoir of his toxic childhood， his out of control teen years， his numerous slips into drug use and dealing， and the multiple chances for change and improvement that he let slip out of his fingers。 And yet。。。he eventually found his way。 Literature， history， and debate played a large part in finally putting the renowned Ivy League educator on his current path， where he is currently inspiring so many， and serving as a role model to the idea that it is never too late to choose a different future。This ARC was provided by Hachette， in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
April Sanders
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What a truly inspiring story。 I’ll admit that when I received an ARC of the book I had absolutely no idea who the author was or what he had accomplished， so I didn’t go into it with any kind of expectation。 Usually when I read a memoir it’s of somebody that’s well known， so I kind of know their story already。 This one brought out so many different emotions; I cried， I laughed， I felt angry， excited， anxious。 I wish I had even an ounce of the passion Fleming does。 I give this memoir a solid 5 sta What a truly inspiring story。 I’ll admit that when I received an ARC of the book I had absolutely no idea who the author was or what he had accomplished， so I didn’t go into it with any kind of expectation。 Usually when I read a memoir it’s of somebody that’s well known， so I kind of know their story already。 This one brought out so many different emotions; I cried， I laughed， I felt angry， excited， anxious。 I wish I had even an ounce of the passion Fleming does。 I give this memoir a solid 5 stars， and I hope his team of debaters will be able to attend the program at Harvard in-person again sooner than later。 。。。more
Pamela Vogler
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Wow！ What a wonderfully written memoir！ I was hooked from the 1st sentence。 Mr。 Fleming has achieved many great things in his young life。 His book is brutally honest。 I loved his determination and never quit attitude。 My words are so inadequate in describing this book。 Thank you Hachette Books for the ARC。
Krista theliterateporcupine
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It's hard to summarize someone's life story， especially one with some many twists and turns as Brandon Fleming's。 What I can say， however， is once you start this book， you won't be able to put it down。This is the story of one man's journey from drug-addiction and abuse to saving other teen's lives and teaching at one of the top schools in the country。 The beginning， and parts of Fleming's childhood were rough to read; his step-father beat him and his siblings， his babysitter raped him， and his c It's hard to summarize someone's life story， especially one with some many twists and turns as Brandon Fleming's。 What I can say， however， is once you start this book， you won't be able to put it down。This is the story of one man's journey from drug-addiction and abuse to saving other teen's lives and teaching at one of the top schools in the country。 The beginning， and parts of Fleming's childhood were rough to read; his step-father beat him and his siblings， his babysitter raped him， and his cousins and sister's boyfriend introduced him to a world of drugs and street life。 By the time he reached high school， he had completely destroyed his academic potential and the lives of those closest to him。 At one point， he felt so stuck with the life he had carved for himself that he thought suicide was his only way out。 It was through school teachers， his mother， and basketball coaches， however， that Fleming realized he was made to do greater things。Throughout this autobiography， the author remains humble and honest about himself。 Fleming never elevates his actions or opinions above other people， rather， he describes himself as weak， easily influenced， and dumb。 Even when he is asked to coach the Harvard debate team， Fleming undermines himself。 The reader will be rooting for Fleming to succeed with every turn of the page。Invigorating， Matter-of-Fact， and Captivating， this BIPOC autobiography should be added to your must-read list。Thank you， HB Social Club for an ARC of this book！TW: Child abuse， racial slurs， drugs， suicide， rape （not explicit） 。。。more
RyReads
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A powerful memoir of transformation。 At times， this was a hard emotional read。 By the end， it was powerful and profound。 #goodreadsgiveaway
Rae Thompson-Scott
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Miseducated has “Starring Denzel Washington” written all over it or perhaps someone younger like Michael B Jordan or Daniel Kaluuya — idk but I do know that as I was reading this story I felt like I was watching the movie in my head。 Thank you @netgalley and @bpfleming for this ARC in exchange for an honest review！ Brandon Fleming is a young black man who survived physical & sexual abuse， neglect， gang banging， drug dealing， a failed college basketball career， and a suicide attempt to become a t Miseducated has “Starring Denzel Washington” written all over it or perhaps someone younger like Michael B Jordan or Daniel Kaluuya — idk but I do know that as I was reading this story I felt like I was watching the movie in my head。 Thank you @netgalley and @bpfleming for this ARC in exchange for an honest review！ Brandon Fleming is a young black man who survived physical & sexual abuse， neglect， gang banging， drug dealing， a failed college basketball career， and a suicide attempt to become a teacher， mentor and director & founder of the Harvard Debate Council Diversity Program — a program that gives black youth in Atlanta the opportunity to study and compete at Harvard’s summer debate residency。 Most of the transformation stories that we hear are from people who are much older reflecting on their past experiences through the Jim Crow era or the Civil Right Movement。 This is a story about someone who came of age during the ‘big white T-shirt with Timbs’ phase of the 90s/00s。 This story is from someone who “Milly Rocked” and “Cranked Dat Soulja Boy” on the dance floor at prom — someone from MY generation。 That’s what I appreciate most about this story。 It’s real and relevant！ I love the message in the title of this memoir， Miseducated。 Some of us aren’t just underprivileged or poor， rather we are taught too much about things that are irrelevant to our struggle or we lack the teachings of things that can elevate us。 We’re taught how to survive the streets and not how to survive in the corporate world because a lot of our family members & peers never really made it out of the streets to begin with。 We’re taught about Abe Lincoln & Shakespeare but not taught enough about WEB Dubois & Langston Hughes。 That’s what it means to be miseducated。 Miseducated deserves to be on the big screen — think the transformation of Malcolm X movie meets the triumph of The Great Debaters！ 。。。more
Chris breeh
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Wow strong 5 ⭐️ Thank you netgalley for this ARCThis book touched down on alot of topics。 And i want to thank the author for being so vulnerable and sharing his story and what he went through his family etc。 It was honestly amazing to read about how many people brandon helped it truly was so beautiful he saw himself in alot of the people and stuff he did in his past and he didnt want people doing what he did so he wanted to help people for the better and make them strive because he knew they had Wow strong 5 ⭐️ Thank you netgalley for this ARCThis book touched down on alot of topics。 And i want to thank the author for being so vulnerable and sharing his story and what he went through his family etc。 It was honestly amazing to read about how many people brandon helped it truly was so beautiful he saw himself in alot of the people and stuff he did in his past and he didnt want people doing what he did so he wanted to help people for the better and make them strive because he knew they had it in them。 He was hard on them but it all was worth it in the end。 He even wrote about things that i didnt know of and i thank you for talking about some of these things。Also i never knew ron clark did all these different things i watched him on survivor and just thought he was a teacher and that was it。。 so thank you for informing me on him aswell！ I loved reading this story because it touched down on alot of topics we deal with in america。 The mind of brandon was just so amazing to me he knew what he wanted and he made sure he reached his goals and helping people along the way like his younger brother etc was so important and im glad he shared that。 Also the writing in this book was great。 Im so glad brandon found himself and didnt let his past define him and he grew from it and is doing such great things for the youth。 This memoir was such a great read。 I love a good memoir so thank YOU brandon for sharing your story and the stories of others along the way and also informing me on people from long ago。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Miseducated: My Journey
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Miseducated: My Journey&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft