Two thoughts repeatedly came to mind as I read this book: "There but for the grace of God go I" and Robert Frost's poem, The Road Less Traveled. Wes Moore, the author, was curious enough about Wes Moore, the prisoner (serving a life sentence for a robbery in which an off-duty police officer was killed), that he contacted him, and maintained contact with him, and ultimately reached out to his friends and family. The book is a snapshot of two lives, and repeatedly illustrates how choices, some simple, some complex, have consequences, and the importance of nurture. Economically, and socially the boys seem to share many of the same disadvantages, yet one has a support network, and people who do not give up on him; the other is forced to be his own support, and at one point, you believe he too will overcome. Wes the author has the advantage of having two generations of educated family members. The author poses many questions, some asked of himself, some of Wes Moore, prisoner; there are no easy answers, and so many questions remain. The book makes no excuses for the outcomes, but Wes Moore author deftly points out the story's poignancy with a quote repeated in the book. "The chilling truth is that his life story might have been mine; the tragedy is that my life story might have been his."