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Little Brother: Love, Tragedy, and My Search for the Truth
This intimate exploration of race and inequality in America tells the story of a journalist’s long-time relationship with his mentee, Jorell Cleveland, through the Big Brothers Big Sisters program and investigates Jorell's tragic fatal shooting. In 2005, soon after Ben Westhoff moved to St. Louis, he joined the Big Brothers Big Sisters program and was paired with Jorell Cleveland. Ben was twenty-eight, a white college grad from an affluent family. Jorell was eight, one of nine children from a poor, African American family living in nearby Ferguson. But the two instantly connected. Ben and Jorell formed a bond stronger than nearly any other in their lives. When Ben met the woman who'd become his wife, she observed that Ben and Jorell were "a package deal." They were brothers.
In the summer of 2016, Jorell was shot at point blank range in broad daylight in the middle of the street, yet no one was charged in his death. Ben grappled with mourning Jorell, but also with a feeling of responsibility. As Jorell’s mentor, what could he have done differently? As a journalist, he had reported on gang life, interviewed crime kingpins, and even infiltrated drug labs in China. But now, he was investigating the life and death of someone he knew personally and examining what he did and did not know about his friend. Learning the truth about Jorell and the man who killed him required Ben to uncover a heartbreaking cycle of poverty, poor education, drug trafficking, and violence. Little Brother brilliantly combines a deeply personal history with a true-crime narrative that exposes the realities of life in communities like Ferguson all around the country.
In the summer of 2016, Jorell was shot at point blank range in broad daylight in the middle of the street, yet no one was charged in his death. Ben grappled with mourning Jorell, but also with a feeling of responsibility. As Jorell’s mentor, what could he have done differently? As a journalist, he had reported on gang life, interviewed crime kingpins, and even infiltrated drug labs in China. But now, he was investigating the life and death of someone he knew personally and examining what he did and did not know about his friend. Learning the truth about Jorell and the man who killed him required Ben to uncover a heartbreaking cycle of poverty, poor education, drug trafficking, and violence. Little Brother brilliantly combines a deeply personal history with a true-crime narrative that exposes the realities of life in communities like Ferguson all around the country.
288 pages, Hardcover
Published May 24, 2022
17 people are currently reading
2078 people want to read
About the author
Ben Westhoff
10 books190 followersBen Westhoff's new book Little Brother: Love, Tragedy, and My Search For the Truth (May 24, 2022, Hachette Books) is a true crime memoir detailing his investigation into the unsolved killing of Jorell Cleveland, Westhoff's mentee in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program for 11 years. His previous book Fentanyl, Inc.: How Rogue Chemists Are Creating the Deadliest Wave of the Opioid Epidemic (Grove Atlantic) is the highly-acclaimed, bombshell first book about fentanyl, which is causing the worst drug crisis in American history. It has received glowing reviews, was included on many year-end best lists, and Westhoff was featured on NPR's Fresh Air and Joe Rogan's podcast. He now speaks around the country about the fentanyl crisis, and has advised top government officials on the problem, including from the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, and the U.S. State Department.
Westhoff's previous book Original Gangstas: Tupac Shakur, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube, and the Birth of West Coast Rap is one of the best-selling hip-hop books of all time and has been translated into multiple languages, receiving top reviews from Rolling Stone, People, Kirkus, and others. S. Leigh Savidge, Academy Award nominee and co-writer of Straight Outta Compton said it "may be the best book ever written about the hip hop world."
Westhoff is an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, the Library of Congress, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, Rolling Stone, Vice, and others. His 2011 book on southern hip-hop, Dirty South: OutKast, Lil Wayne, Soulja Boy, and the Southern Rappers Who Reinvented Hip-Hop was a Library Journal best seller.
Subscribe to Westhoff's newsletter at benwesthoff.substack.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
February 5, 2022
Giveaway Win!
4.5 Stars!
Ben Westhoff is a culture writer, I've previously read his book Original Gangstas which was about the birth of West Coast rap and I really enjoyed it. Ben Westhoff is white but he's an actual fan of Hip Hop culture. He's written 2 other books that I intend on getting to eventually. So when I saw that he had new book coming out I immediately entered the giveaway so I could read it for free.
Little Brother is about Ben Westhoff's relationship with a Black kid Jorell Cleveland who he met through the Big Brothers, Big Sisters program. Jorell was 1 of 8 kids from an extremely poor family living in Ferguson, Missouri....
Yes that Ferguson.
Jorell and Ben shared a strong bond from the time Jorell was 8 years old until Jorell's tragic death at 19 years old. Ben combines his grief with his investigative journalist skills to attempt to solve Jorell's murder.
Little Brother is part memoir part True Crime. Ben learns that the Jorell he knew wasn't the only Jorell there was. Ben delves deep into gang life, law enforcement and the factors that lead to inner city violence.
I was a bit worried about how Ben Westhoff would handle things. I was concerned that Ben's whiteness would blind him to the reality of poor inner city life but luckily Ben quickly realized that his white ass was in over his head and he sought out Black folks to help him understand what life was really like. This book had me going through it. We learn very early in the book that Jorell is murdered and then we go back and meet Jorell at 8 years old and you fall in love with this kid. So much so that I was irrationally hoping that he didn't die. We are then walked through the life that Jorell kept from Ben and you feel this awful sadness as Jorell keeps making terrible decisions. Finally Ben walks us through his search for Jorell's murderer and that's sad as well because everyone is just so very young.
I really enjoyed this book and would love to see this book turned into a documentary or True Crime show. If you like True Crime, Memoirs and Coming of Age stories then give Little Brother a read. I think you'll like it.
Highly recommended
4.5 Stars!
Ben Westhoff is a culture writer, I've previously read his book Original Gangstas which was about the birth of West Coast rap and I really enjoyed it. Ben Westhoff is white but he's an actual fan of Hip Hop culture. He's written 2 other books that I intend on getting to eventually. So when I saw that he had new book coming out I immediately entered the giveaway so I could read it for free.
Little Brother is about Ben Westhoff's relationship with a Black kid Jorell Cleveland who he met through the Big Brothers, Big Sisters program. Jorell was 1 of 8 kids from an extremely poor family living in Ferguson, Missouri....
Yes that Ferguson.
Jorell and Ben shared a strong bond from the time Jorell was 8 years old until Jorell's tragic death at 19 years old. Ben combines his grief with his investigative journalist skills to attempt to solve Jorell's murder.
Little Brother is part memoir part True Crime. Ben learns that the Jorell he knew wasn't the only Jorell there was. Ben delves deep into gang life, law enforcement and the factors that lead to inner city violence.
I was a bit worried about how Ben Westhoff would handle things. I was concerned that Ben's whiteness would blind him to the reality of poor inner city life but luckily Ben quickly realized that his white ass was in over his head and he sought out Black folks to help him understand what life was really like. This book had me going through it. We learn very early in the book that Jorell is murdered and then we go back and meet Jorell at 8 years old and you fall in love with this kid. So much so that I was irrationally hoping that he didn't die. We are then walked through the life that Jorell kept from Ben and you feel this awful sadness as Jorell keeps making terrible decisions. Finally Ben walks us through his search for Jorell's murderer and that's sad as well because everyone is just so very young.
I really enjoyed this book and would love to see this book turned into a documentary or True Crime show. If you like True Crime, Memoirs and Coming of Age stories then give Little Brother a read. I think you'll like it.
Highly recommended
August 7, 2022
4.0 stars
This is an intimate true crime novel that celebrates the life of the victim while bringing attention to the challenges faced by people of lower economic statuses. I appreciated that the book provided some potential answers while also acknowledging the imperfections of the justice system. Highly recommend to true crime readers looking for a topical murder case that addresses racial issues.
This is an intimate true crime novel that celebrates the life of the victim while bringing attention to the challenges faced by people of lower economic statuses. I appreciated that the book provided some potential answers while also acknowledging the imperfections of the justice system. Highly recommend to true crime readers looking for a topical murder case that addresses racial issues.
May 24, 2024
3.5 Stars
December 14, 2021
The author, a journalist, had enrolled in a program in which he mentored an impoverished black youth from a local area. Jorell, who he came to know and love as a happy-go-lucky child, turned into a young adult full of anger and angst. When some years later, Jorell is found brutally murdered and the case goes unsolved, he puts his own journalistic skills to good use and investigates the murder himself.
I thought this was a worthy story to tell. The author painted a full picture and managed to get to the heart of the culture of gangs, drugs, guns and violence in America. It is a tragic story, to exist within a culture as a teen with angst, issues, and instability, where an easy path is almost laid out and the cards stacked against you. The young immature brain is not known for making the greatest of decisions. Many kids act out: bunking off school, smoking weed, or getting in trouble, but often it’s something they can come back from with some growth and reflection. In contrast, the suffering, pain and ‘acting out’ here is a well-trodden path with dire, irrevocable consequences. The choices that Jorell made, it seemed to be a tragedy waiting to happen; a volcano waiting to erupt. But far more than a statistic or a gangbanger that ‘lives by the street, dies by the street’, the author presented a picture of a grieving single dad, and a promising young man lost in an alluring culture of violence. Someone who couldn’t see that there may have been a way out, and this is a tragedy.
I did, at times, find the writing style heavy with a factual, investigative slant, whereas I usually lean towards raw and emotional memoirs. I did find it particularly interesting as he very honestly revealed his own surprise and, in a way, naivety about Jorell’s mental state and the dangerous situation he was in. I gained a lot from this book, think it is important and I recommend it. Thanks to Netgalley for the arc.
I thought this was a worthy story to tell. The author painted a full picture and managed to get to the heart of the culture of gangs, drugs, guns and violence in America. It is a tragic story, to exist within a culture as a teen with angst, issues, and instability, where an easy path is almost laid out and the cards stacked against you. The young immature brain is not known for making the greatest of decisions. Many kids act out: bunking off school, smoking weed, or getting in trouble, but often it’s something they can come back from with some growth and reflection. In contrast, the suffering, pain and ‘acting out’ here is a well-trodden path with dire, irrevocable consequences. The choices that Jorell made, it seemed to be a tragedy waiting to happen; a volcano waiting to erupt. But far more than a statistic or a gangbanger that ‘lives by the street, dies by the street’, the author presented a picture of a grieving single dad, and a promising young man lost in an alluring culture of violence. Someone who couldn’t see that there may have been a way out, and this is a tragedy.
I did, at times, find the writing style heavy with a factual, investigative slant, whereas I usually lean towards raw and emotional memoirs. I did find it particularly interesting as he very honestly revealed his own surprise and, in a way, naivety about Jorell’s mental state and the dangerous situation he was in. I gained a lot from this book, think it is important and I recommend it. Thanks to Netgalley for the arc.
June 5, 2022
***READ THIS BOOK**** I read it in one sitting. Please take the time to read this. The author has captured the heartache experienced when losing a loved one to gun violence.
The relationship between the author and his “little brother” and the tragic loss experienced by not only the author but the entire family and community will stick with you.
The system is broken and young people are dying. We need to pay attention!! The cycle needs to stop….!
The relationship between the author and his “little brother” and the tragic loss experienced by not only the author but the entire family and community will stick with you.
The system is broken and young people are dying. We need to pay attention!! The cycle needs to stop….!
May 27, 2022
I'm always so torn about how highly to rate my own books but I usually end up going with five stars.
November 4, 2022
In 2005 Ben Westhoff signed up for the Big Brothers Big Sisters program in St. Louis, MO. He was paired with 8-year-old Jorell Cleveland who was living with his Dad and several other siblings. He and Ben truly bonded and Jorell came to Ben's wedding, stayed with Ben and his wife, and eventually even babysat for his kids. But, when Jorell was 19 he was murdered on the street not far from his house. Random gun violence wasn't uncommon in Ferguson, MO and surrounding areas, but this obviously hit Ben hard. As an investigative journalist, Ben decided to dig into Jorell's murder and see if he could figure out who had murdered Jorell. But, what he found was hard to swallow. Ben always tried to see the best in Jorell, but he found that Jorell was using and selling drugs and had several illegal guns. He also seemed to have a very short fuse, which Ben had never witnessed. As Ben dug into who could have murdered Jorell he struggled with what else he could have done as Jorell's "Big Brother" and also how does someone deal with the level of trauma and everyday violence that Jorell and his family and friends experienced. There are no easy answers for solving the epidemic of gun violence in poor, urban areas which this book definitely highlights.
Some reviews complained about Westhoff's "white savior complex", but I didn't see it as anything more than him processing Jorell's death and thinking about what, if anything, he could have done more or differently to help him. I think regardless of race, if you don't grow up in the kind of violent poverty that Jorell did it would be impossible to understand what that life is like. There was just SO MUCH needless violence that anyone living in that area would have some level of trauma even if somehow they didn't know anyone personally who had been shot or killed. But that mindset is extremely hard to get out of even for people who did physically leave the area. It's a very hard issue with no real solutions or answers. Jorell had people in his life who cared about him and wanted better for him - that's why his father enrolled him in the Big Brothers program. But, in the end the pull of the neighborhood was just too much. Westhoff's relationship with Jorell gave him a unique angle to look at this issue, but it's still a hard book without much in the way of solutions. Although, Westhoff did figure out who Jorell's likely murderer was by the end of the book.
Some quotes I liked:
[Ben accompanied Joe (Jorell's Dad) to a parent/teacher conference at Jorell's high school] "'He's a great student,' she said. 'He just sits quietly in class and doesn't say anything.' So that was it. Jorell was in the teacher's favor not because he was excelling, but because he wasn't disturbing anybody. He wasn't likely learning anything, but because he wasn't causing trouble she was going to pass him." (p. 81)
[An example of the ridiculously senseless violence escalating over minor arguments] "As their argument escalated, Jorell grabbed one of his guns and followed Montrel into Mike and Iesha's room. 'He pulled the fucking trigger!' Montrel said. Fortunately, the gun didn't have its [magazine] in, and no bullets were fired. 'He was trying to scare me. Jorell had reached a point in his life, he wasn't taking no bullshit from nobody.' Montrel actually respected him for this, and, as unlikely as it sounds, the pair quickly reconciled. The very next day, in fact, Montrel was once again at the Cleveland house...Jorell wore a sheepish expression and apologized for the gun incident the previous day. 'Man, we ain't even gotta talk about that,' Montrel responded. 'You don't have to apologize. We brothers.'" (p. 171-72) [This whole encounter BLEW MY MIND. Jorell would have murdered Montrel if he'd grabbed a loaded gun. Yet, they were friends before and continued to be friends afterward. If this is "normal" then what isn't normal when it comes to senseless violence?!]
Some reviews complained about Westhoff's "white savior complex", but I didn't see it as anything more than him processing Jorell's death and thinking about what, if anything, he could have done more or differently to help him. I think regardless of race, if you don't grow up in the kind of violent poverty that Jorell did it would be impossible to understand what that life is like. There was just SO MUCH needless violence that anyone living in that area would have some level of trauma even if somehow they didn't know anyone personally who had been shot or killed. But that mindset is extremely hard to get out of even for people who did physically leave the area. It's a very hard issue with no real solutions or answers. Jorell had people in his life who cared about him and wanted better for him - that's why his father enrolled him in the Big Brothers program. But, in the end the pull of the neighborhood was just too much. Westhoff's relationship with Jorell gave him a unique angle to look at this issue, but it's still a hard book without much in the way of solutions. Although, Westhoff did figure out who Jorell's likely murderer was by the end of the book.
Some quotes I liked:
[Ben accompanied Joe (Jorell's Dad) to a parent/teacher conference at Jorell's high school] "'He's a great student,' she said. 'He just sits quietly in class and doesn't say anything.' So that was it. Jorell was in the teacher's favor not because he was excelling, but because he wasn't disturbing anybody. He wasn't likely learning anything, but because he wasn't causing trouble she was going to pass him." (p. 81)
[An example of the ridiculously senseless violence escalating over minor arguments] "As their argument escalated, Jorell grabbed one of his guns and followed Montrel into Mike and Iesha's room. 'He pulled the fucking trigger!' Montrel said. Fortunately, the gun didn't have its [magazine] in, and no bullets were fired. 'He was trying to scare me. Jorell had reached a point in his life, he wasn't taking no bullshit from nobody.' Montrel actually respected him for this, and, as unlikely as it sounds, the pair quickly reconciled. The very next day, in fact, Montrel was once again at the Cleveland house...Jorell wore a sheepish expression and apologized for the gun incident the previous day. 'Man, we ain't even gotta talk about that,' Montrel responded. 'You don't have to apologize. We brothers.'" (p. 171-72) [This whole encounter BLEW MY MIND. Jorell would have murdered Montrel if he'd grabbed a loaded gun. Yet, they were friends before and continued to be friends afterward. If this is "normal" then what isn't normal when it comes to senseless violence?!]
January 23, 2022
WOW!! Yes, I have heard so much about poverty and racial inequity and social unrest and everything that the media covers, either promoting or detracting from these issues, but this book is hard hitting on how this affects families, children, generations, friends, communities.
The story itself is heartbreaking that a young man was murdered and there were never any answers, heartbreaking that because cases are open the police involved can't give the family and friends more answers, heartbreaking that this didn't have to happen, heartbreaking at a mentor investigated and found out so much that he never knew about his mentee and had to confront how his investigation might put his own family in harms way.
This book shows that there are many things that need to change in our country and that we ALL need to work together to figure it out and find the solutions, not just the answer to who murdered someone, but how to fix our society as a whole to make life more equitable. We will always be a diverse society with different cultural norms, but we need to work together instead of tearing each other apart.
I will be adding Ben Westhoff's other books to my want to read list, if they are anything like this one (even though they are different) they will be just as hard to put down.
The story itself is heartbreaking that a young man was murdered and there were never any answers, heartbreaking that because cases are open the police involved can't give the family and friends more answers, heartbreaking that this didn't have to happen, heartbreaking at a mentor investigated and found out so much that he never knew about his mentee and had to confront how his investigation might put his own family in harms way.
This book shows that there are many things that need to change in our country and that we ALL need to work together to figure it out and find the solutions, not just the answer to who murdered someone, but how to fix our society as a whole to make life more equitable. We will always be a diverse society with different cultural norms, but we need to work together instead of tearing each other apart.
I will be adding Ben Westhoff's other books to my want to read list, if they are anything like this one (even though they are different) they will be just as hard to put down.
May 29, 2022
Author Ben Westhoff's account of his relationship with the child, and then teenager, he was paired with through Big Brothers Big Sisters is a heartbreaker -- a true story that's ultimately about his inability to save, or even truly know, the young man he loved. Westhoff sets off to find his little brother's killer, and while the book makes a compelling case that he succeeded, he ultimately found something far more devastating: a world so stacked against the poor that his little brother barely had a chance.
November 10, 2022
What a well balanced mix of memoir, true crime and investigative journalism! This does such a phenomenal job of laying out the massive complexities facing St. Louis from a race and class perspective, how we got here via the history to current day situation. Also, really got across the division that exists across the map of the city. It is such a personal story, told in a really compelling way, while drawing people into the difficulties facing someone like his little brother and the cycle of violence he struggled to pull him away from.
The one element I maybe feel critical is just how hard he presses on the element of violence and these areas being like war zones that perhaps feed into scare tactics a bit, as the popular line that St Louis is so violent and dangerous. They're dangerous areas sure, but broadly the places being talked about are family neighborhoods in impoverished suburbs where people are just living their typical lives for the most part yet intermittently punctuated by violence.
The one element I maybe feel critical is just how hard he presses on the element of violence and these areas being like war zones that perhaps feed into scare tactics a bit, as the popular line that St Louis is so violent and dangerous. They're dangerous areas sure, but broadly the places being talked about are family neighborhoods in impoverished suburbs where people are just living their typical lives for the most part yet intermittently punctuated by violence.
June 7, 2023
I started this book last year as I was flying abroad, and I accidentally left it at Ben-Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv! The book discusses streets and neighborhoods I know very well, and I even know some of the people written about in the book.
I have had countless friends murdered in St. Louis City and County, several murdered on the very Kinloch and Berkeley blocks discussed in this book, and my mother, nephew, and brother-in-law have all been murdered in St. Louis in recent years. So, not only does this book discuss familiar terrain, but it also evoked many memories of the streets discussed and the constant and ever-present threat of lethal violence that many of us live with.
Author Ben Westhoff uses the murder of his Little Brother from the Big Sisters and Big Brothers program to examine the generational poverty, substandard education, and endless cycle of violence in the impoverished northern suburbs of St. Louis. Westhoff discovers he didn't know his Little Brother like he thought he did and learns more about him after his murder which takes him into the world of St. Louis hip-hop, street crews, heroin addiction, and murder. Westhoff is seeking answers through the criminal justice system as someone who has raised and acculturated to believe in the system. The streets want justice in blood or are indifferent, and the average Black resident wants more cops on the street and not less. Reality is where the doughy eyed ideas of white liberals and academics go to die.
It can feel in St. Louis, like you're not really living in America. Like you're not in the "First World". So detached from opportunity for many of us and so full of bad memories. When you're in your 30's and 40's and half of your childhood friends are dead, in jail, or dopefiends, you wonder why you stayed? So many of the best and brightest have left, particularly to Atlanta, Dallas, and Houston. Not only is the lifestyle and standard of living well below that of the "hot metros", even worse is the mentality.
I left myself as soon as I could to the DMV and Brooklyn, and later to Dallas, but always end up back here. To have even moderate success here, I've had to isolate myself from nearly everyone I grew up with, keep many people at a distance, maintain a small circle of close friends, constantly have my guard up, and seek to cultivate new friendships and relationships with more positive people. And books and travel and a lot of it! If not for my conversion to Islam at age seventeen, beyond the shadow of any doubt in my mind, my fate would've been that of Jorell Cleveland before I saw 21. For some it's religion, for some it's sports, education, a trade, the military, or maybe even the Big Brothers program, but without something many of our local youth have two options- an early death or prison.
In my eyes St. Louis is somewhere well-behid European nations, the Gulf, Israel, Turkey, Malaysia, etc. and above Afghanistan and Syria in terms of standard of living for low-income residents (particularly if they're Black). This is why I will always be super annoyed by St. Louis urbanists and civic boosters waving their city flags, glossing over our issues, ignoring the carnage on our streets, and dismissing our murder rate as "it's just the way they count the numbers". This is indifference and is no different than the wealthy in the gated neighborhoods of Caracas, Johannesburg, Mumbai, Karachi, and Nairobi who eat well, send their kids to good schools, and aren't bothered by the crippling poverty surrounding them.
I've said for years that the future of American cities will look a lot like apartheid era South Africa. Wealthy progressives in the urban core, relatively affluent traditionalists in the exurbs, and the poor, disproportionately Black, fighting to survive in desolate and impoverished suburban areas like Kinloch that look no different than the 1980's shanty towns outside of Johannesburg.
As a native of North St. Louis County, I would also like to thank Ben Westhoff. I was honestly a little skeptical. Would this be just another book full of buzzwords, popular academic jargon, and painful naivete? It wasn't. Ben made a few small mistakes regarding north county history, but overall, he did a masterful job. In 2014, national and international media descended upon Ferguson and north county, and I personally took a number of journalists to Kinloch and other places in north county. Many wrote good stories then, and for the first time, the very severe issues of racism, white-flight, poverty, violence, drug abuse, failing schools, and inadequate public education in north county were being discussed in a serious manner. Then the academics and non-profit industrial complex arrived, north county wasn't interesting to them, and they headed to south St. Louis City. Ben returned with this book and did so in a thought-provoking manner.
I have had countless friends murdered in St. Louis City and County, several murdered on the very Kinloch and Berkeley blocks discussed in this book, and my mother, nephew, and brother-in-law have all been murdered in St. Louis in recent years. So, not only does this book discuss familiar terrain, but it also evoked many memories of the streets discussed and the constant and ever-present threat of lethal violence that many of us live with.
Author Ben Westhoff uses the murder of his Little Brother from the Big Sisters and Big Brothers program to examine the generational poverty, substandard education, and endless cycle of violence in the impoverished northern suburbs of St. Louis. Westhoff discovers he didn't know his Little Brother like he thought he did and learns more about him after his murder which takes him into the world of St. Louis hip-hop, street crews, heroin addiction, and murder. Westhoff is seeking answers through the criminal justice system as someone who has raised and acculturated to believe in the system. The streets want justice in blood or are indifferent, and the average Black resident wants more cops on the street and not less. Reality is where the doughy eyed ideas of white liberals and academics go to die.
It can feel in St. Louis, like you're not really living in America. Like you're not in the "First World". So detached from opportunity for many of us and so full of bad memories. When you're in your 30's and 40's and half of your childhood friends are dead, in jail, or dopefiends, you wonder why you stayed? So many of the best and brightest have left, particularly to Atlanta, Dallas, and Houston. Not only is the lifestyle and standard of living well below that of the "hot metros", even worse is the mentality.
I left myself as soon as I could to the DMV and Brooklyn, and later to Dallas, but always end up back here. To have even moderate success here, I've had to isolate myself from nearly everyone I grew up with, keep many people at a distance, maintain a small circle of close friends, constantly have my guard up, and seek to cultivate new friendships and relationships with more positive people. And books and travel and a lot of it! If not for my conversion to Islam at age seventeen, beyond the shadow of any doubt in my mind, my fate would've been that of Jorell Cleveland before I saw 21. For some it's religion, for some it's sports, education, a trade, the military, or maybe even the Big Brothers program, but without something many of our local youth have two options- an early death or prison.
In my eyes St. Louis is somewhere well-behid European nations, the Gulf, Israel, Turkey, Malaysia, etc. and above Afghanistan and Syria in terms of standard of living for low-income residents (particularly if they're Black). This is why I will always be super annoyed by St. Louis urbanists and civic boosters waving their city flags, glossing over our issues, ignoring the carnage on our streets, and dismissing our murder rate as "it's just the way they count the numbers". This is indifference and is no different than the wealthy in the gated neighborhoods of Caracas, Johannesburg, Mumbai, Karachi, and Nairobi who eat well, send their kids to good schools, and aren't bothered by the crippling poverty surrounding them.
I've said for years that the future of American cities will look a lot like apartheid era South Africa. Wealthy progressives in the urban core, relatively affluent traditionalists in the exurbs, and the poor, disproportionately Black, fighting to survive in desolate and impoverished suburban areas like Kinloch that look no different than the 1980's shanty towns outside of Johannesburg.
As a native of North St. Louis County, I would also like to thank Ben Westhoff. I was honestly a little skeptical. Would this be just another book full of buzzwords, popular academic jargon, and painful naivete? It wasn't. Ben made a few small mistakes regarding north county history, but overall, he did a masterful job. In 2014, national and international media descended upon Ferguson and north county, and I personally took a number of journalists to Kinloch and other places in north county. Many wrote good stories then, and for the first time, the very severe issues of racism, white-flight, poverty, violence, drug abuse, failing schools, and inadequate public education in north county were being discussed in a serious manner. Then the academics and non-profit industrial complex arrived, north county wasn't interesting to them, and they headed to south St. Louis City. Ben returned with this book and did so in a thought-provoking manner.
March 18, 2024
Devastating heartbreaking while raw, honest, and necessary.
February 18, 2025
I went to college with the author although we didn’t know each other at the time, but when getting ready for my 25th reunion, I saw mention of it in a Facebook group. I do not read a lot of nonfiction, and when I do, I usually read it slowly. This book was written really well and taught you a lot about the economic, racial and societal forces in St. Louis and other American cities but in such a relatable and personal way. I almost couldn’t put it down— even by the pool over Spring Break in Costa Rica!
Westhoff weaved together his personal story with his Little Brother and his family, friends and associates with investigating his death.
Westhoff weaved together his personal story with his Little Brother and his family, friends and associates with investigating his death.
August 25, 2022
An amazing book about his little brother and the disadvantaged life he led. So many topics at play here.. St Louis in the spotlight, and all the layers of class, SES, education, opportunity—-
I was quite moved by Westhoff’s care, concern and trust
Shared with his little bro—
Quite a sad but too realistic story of too many youth—-
I was quite moved by Westhoff’s care, concern and trust
Shared with his little bro—
Quite a sad but too realistic story of too many youth—-
November 18, 2022
This is an interesting and unique take, but a sad story, about one white man's effort to solve the murder of his "little brother" from the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. I try to be very aware of books written about people of color or marginalized groups from the dominant or outside group, as well as "white savior" narratives. This book is not that.
The author, Ben Westhoff, is well aware of his privilege as a white man who had a stable, safe upbringing. And he continues to learn throughout the book. After he moves to St. Louis and works as a newspaper reporter, he joins the Big Brothers Big Sisters program and is paired up with Jorell Cleveland, then age 8. Jorell was one of nine children being raised by a single dad in Ferguson, Missouri. Jorell and Ben instantly connected, and Ben truly committed to Jorell. Later, when Ben moved to New York City for a few years, Jorell visited twice, even staying with him and his new fiance/wife for about five weeks. They were truly close and felt like brothers, and Jorell's family supported their relationship and considered Ben a part of the family too.
But this book shows that no matter how much you love someone and become close to them, when you grow up so very differently and live very different day-to-day lives—especially as a white man and a young Black boy/man—you may never really know each other. When Jorell is murdered at close range at age 19 not far from his house, Ben is stunned. But he quickly learns that he didn't know another side of Jorell, a side Jorell didn't want Ben to see. Ben begins using his investigative reporter skills to try to solve Jorell's murder.
The first half of the book is about their relationship, while the second half is more investigative reporting of the crime. Both are strong. This is a sad book, obviously because Jorell was murdered, but also about the divide between Black and white, rough neighborhoods vs. safe middle-class neighborhoods. It's about institutional racism, the barriers and obstacles society creates for young Black people, the seemingly always-present drugs and guns. One of the more fascinating parts of the book is about the history of St. Louis, which is a large part of the book. The author does a fantastic job—you can tell he's a journalist—connecting the history to present-day issues and then Jorell's neighborhood and life. Ferguson is where Michael Brown was killed in 2014, the first time many of us ever heard of Ferguson. That murder and its aftermath are a part of this story too.
If you want to read a different look at institutional racism and how it affects one young Black man, his family and his "big brother," I recommend this book.
The author, Ben Westhoff, is well aware of his privilege as a white man who had a stable, safe upbringing. And he continues to learn throughout the book. After he moves to St. Louis and works as a newspaper reporter, he joins the Big Brothers Big Sisters program and is paired up with Jorell Cleveland, then age 8. Jorell was one of nine children being raised by a single dad in Ferguson, Missouri. Jorell and Ben instantly connected, and Ben truly committed to Jorell. Later, when Ben moved to New York City for a few years, Jorell visited twice, even staying with him and his new fiance/wife for about five weeks. They were truly close and felt like brothers, and Jorell's family supported their relationship and considered Ben a part of the family too.
But this book shows that no matter how much you love someone and become close to them, when you grow up so very differently and live very different day-to-day lives—especially as a white man and a young Black boy/man—you may never really know each other. When Jorell is murdered at close range at age 19 not far from his house, Ben is stunned. But he quickly learns that he didn't know another side of Jorell, a side Jorell didn't want Ben to see. Ben begins using his investigative reporter skills to try to solve Jorell's murder.
The first half of the book is about their relationship, while the second half is more investigative reporting of the crime. Both are strong. This is a sad book, obviously because Jorell was murdered, but also about the divide between Black and white, rough neighborhoods vs. safe middle-class neighborhoods. It's about institutional racism, the barriers and obstacles society creates for young Black people, the seemingly always-present drugs and guns. One of the more fascinating parts of the book is about the history of St. Louis, which is a large part of the book. The author does a fantastic job—you can tell he's a journalist—connecting the history to present-day issues and then Jorell's neighborhood and life. Ferguson is where Michael Brown was killed in 2014, the first time many of us ever heard of Ferguson. That murder and its aftermath are a part of this story too.
If you want to read a different look at institutional racism and how it affects one young Black man, his family and his "big brother," I recommend this book.
October 14, 2023
Little Brother is a fantastic book. I could not stop reading it. I randomly came across it while casually browsing the biography section at a small independent bookstore. The synopsis on the inside cover caught my attention because, although I have not lived there for 30 years, I grew up in a small Illinois town about 30 minutes east of St. Louis. I spent the first 18 years of my life there and had many, many St. Louis outings in high school and college. The synopsis resonated with me because St. Louis is the city I consider home and still visit my mom in that small Illinois town and my dad and stepmom in one of the affluent western suburbs frequently. Even though I grew up in the area, I only knew the very basics of life on the north side. I was actually a victim of a (thankfully) minor situation in about 1989-90 during the VP Fair. While sitting in traffic just north of Laclede's Landing trying to exit after the fireworks, I was punched in the face through an open window by a young man who was walking down the street with his friends. I definitely wanted to read this book.
The book is sad and feels very defeating as a reader, which is a compliment to the author. I can only imagine how the events of this story have changed his life. However, it is a must read. Violence, poverty, and drug use in urban areas is a huge problem nationwide. My heart goes out to Jorell, his family, and all those born into this vicious circle of life with very little hope of finding a better way. Our country needs to do better. I learned intricate details about St. Louis that I did not know, but should have before now. I highly recommend this book for enlightenment to a disturbing problem.
The book is sad and feels very defeating as a reader, which is a compliment to the author. I can only imagine how the events of this story have changed his life. However, it is a must read. Violence, poverty, and drug use in urban areas is a huge problem nationwide. My heart goes out to Jorell, his family, and all those born into this vicious circle of life with very little hope of finding a better way. Our country needs to do better. I learned intricate details about St. Louis that I did not know, but should have before now. I highly recommend this book for enlightenment to a disturbing problem.
May 25, 2022
I really enjoyed this boom that began as Big Brother/Little Brother relationship and turned into so much more.
I thought the author did an incredible of immersing the reader into St. Louis and what it was like to live there through the years. This is a topic that I am not super knowledgable on and I felt like I am coming out the other side with a better understanding of the violence and poverty that occurs but also the good in people.
I loved being introduced to this family and watching them go through the up and downs.
Overall I really enjoyed this book, the historical information was bit overwhelming at times but was well worth it for seeing the relationship these two developed and the effect that relationship has and is still having on the author.
This book will definitely linger with me and keep me thinking.
Thank you Net Galley for my gifted e-copy!
I thought the author did an incredible of immersing the reader into St. Louis and what it was like to live there through the years. This is a topic that I am not super knowledgable on and I felt like I am coming out the other side with a better understanding of the violence and poverty that occurs but also the good in people.
I loved being introduced to this family and watching them go through the up and downs.
Overall I really enjoyed this book, the historical information was bit overwhelming at times but was well worth it for seeing the relationship these two developed and the effect that relationship has and is still having on the author.
This book will definitely linger with me and keep me thinking.
Thank you Net Galley for my gifted e-copy!
June 1, 2022
This book will make you angry and break your heart. It will make you realize (if you haven’t already) how deeply broken many systems in our country are. Westhoff does a great job of covering how poverty, violence, the criminal justice system, and racial inequality effects these communities, not just in St. Louis but across America. This is my first book by this author but not my last. Thanks to the publisher for my free copy.
June 28, 2022
What a great story of love and friendship in the Big Brother, Little Brother progam. Then the evolution of Little Brother who grew up in poverty and violence. Ben’s story and fact gathering provides a great perspective on how one grows up in poverty, violence and the “injustice” system.
December 11, 2022
Thanks for sharing this story, Ben. The descriptive help from your mother as well really helped me immerse myself in your story. Learning stuff like this is vital to our history and knowing how to be better. Thanks for sharing your impactful experience.
July 20, 2022
Very interesting, so many interesting choices made. I enjoyed reading it.
July 21, 2022
Quite thought provoking.
October 23, 2022
This book had me in tears many times but I learned so much. I highly recommend every American read this book.
July 7, 2025
As a St. Louis native I was hesitant to read this one, as most of these stories are repetitive and simply about what a crummy city we’ve turned into. But this was different. This is a mix of true crime, memoir, and investigative journalism. This touches on the violence in our city, gangs and drugs, the overworked police system, the lack of support and funding in our schools, and so much more. This is a moving story about family that was built from kindness. This is a story about a man who refused to give up until he found out the truth.
November 20, 2022
I chose this book mainly because it was about St. Louis. It opened my eyes to the vast difference between my experience of St. Louis and that of the people who live in the northern part of the city. While I was "aware" that north St. Louis was an area of high crime and never went to that area, the book reveled how horrible living there truly is.
Drugs, guns and gangs have taken over the lives of the youth there. So many lives have been ruined or lost because of the poverty they experience every day.
If you want to have your eyes opened to how segregation and lack of good education destroy lives, this is the book to read. I highly recommend it.
Drugs, guns and gangs have taken over the lives of the youth there. So many lives have been ruined or lost because of the poverty they experience every day.
If you want to have your eyes opened to how segregation and lack of good education destroy lives, this is the book to read. I highly recommend it.
July 2, 2022
I’ve just come from finishing “It was all a dream: Biggie and the world that made him” by Justin Tinsley so I had high hopes, and because I’ve loved all Ben’s previous works but could not finish this book. Unable to pinpoint my extreme discomfort 50 pages in I looked over some other reviews. The white savior complex comes across strong as I skipped chapters through to the end to see if there was any insight developed on this journey. This is pretty common on journalists that haven’t examined their own white fragility. Good start Ben, I would recommend more reflection.
June 20, 2022
Not 100% sure how to feel about this book.
January 18, 2022
Thank You GoodReads Giveaways and Hachette Books for a fantastic copy of Little Brother by Ben Westhoff. Below is the description and then my review.
In 2005, soon after Ben Westhoff moved to St. Louis, he joined the Big Brothers Big Sisters program and was paired with Jorell Cleveland. Ben was twenty-eight, a white college grad from an affluent family. Jorell was eight, one of nine children from a poor, African American family living in nearby Ferguson. But the two instantly connected. Ben and Jorell formed a bond stronger than nearly any other in their lives. When Ben met the woman who'd become his wife, she observed that Ben and Jorell were "a package deal." They were brothers.
In the summer of 2016, Jorell was shot at point blank range in broad daylight in the middle of the street, yet no one was charged in his death. Ben grappled with mourning Jorell, but also with a feeling of responsibility. As Jorell’s mentor, what could he have done differently? As a journalist, he had reported on gang life, interviewed crime kingpins, and even infiltrated drug labs in China. But now, he was investigating the life and death of someone he knew personally and examining what he did and did not know about his friend. Learning the truth about Jorell and the man who killed him required Ben to uncover a heartbreaking cycle of poverty, poor education, drug trafficking, and violence. Little Brother brilliantly combines a deeply personal history with a true-crime narrative that exposes the realities of life in communities like Ferguson all around the country.
This is my review of Big Brother: Love, Tragedy, and My Search for the Truth by Ben Westhoff.
First I want to say this guy has big you know wants if you know what I mean. Ben put himself in danger one to many times and this is just the first of his books I have read. I'm thinking he could be home with his family but instead he is walking through crime areas trying to solve this young boy Jorell Cleveland's murder. If you didn't already figure it out from the above, Ben Westhoff is a big brother of Jorell through the Big Brother Big Sister Program out of Missouri. He mentored Jorell starting in 2005 until 2016 when he was killed. Jorell was showing signs like a teenager but it was really much worse. The middle of the book has Ben putting himself out in dangerous situations to solve Jorell's murder. The last part is Ben coming to terms with it and the healing process for all involved. With this novel Ben did major research whether by waiting for phone calls confirming dates, people, places, etc or just Googled everything. I found that very impressive. I look forward to reading his other books, don't let me down Ben. This book is certainly a tragedy as you will see. Looking at the whole picture drugs and guns DO NOT go together. You only become a statistic.
Thanks again for the book about Ben and Jorell.
In 2005, soon after Ben Westhoff moved to St. Louis, he joined the Big Brothers Big Sisters program and was paired with Jorell Cleveland. Ben was twenty-eight, a white college grad from an affluent family. Jorell was eight, one of nine children from a poor, African American family living in nearby Ferguson. But the two instantly connected. Ben and Jorell formed a bond stronger than nearly any other in their lives. When Ben met the woman who'd become his wife, she observed that Ben and Jorell were "a package deal." They were brothers.
In the summer of 2016, Jorell was shot at point blank range in broad daylight in the middle of the street, yet no one was charged in his death. Ben grappled with mourning Jorell, but also with a feeling of responsibility. As Jorell’s mentor, what could he have done differently? As a journalist, he had reported on gang life, interviewed crime kingpins, and even infiltrated drug labs in China. But now, he was investigating the life and death of someone he knew personally and examining what he did and did not know about his friend. Learning the truth about Jorell and the man who killed him required Ben to uncover a heartbreaking cycle of poverty, poor education, drug trafficking, and violence. Little Brother brilliantly combines a deeply personal history with a true-crime narrative that exposes the realities of life in communities like Ferguson all around the country.
This is my review of Big Brother: Love, Tragedy, and My Search for the Truth by Ben Westhoff.
First I want to say this guy has big you know wants if you know what I mean. Ben put himself in danger one to many times and this is just the first of his books I have read. I'm thinking he could be home with his family but instead he is walking through crime areas trying to solve this young boy Jorell Cleveland's murder. If you didn't already figure it out from the above, Ben Westhoff is a big brother of Jorell through the Big Brother Big Sister Program out of Missouri. He mentored Jorell starting in 2005 until 2016 when he was killed. Jorell was showing signs like a teenager but it was really much worse. The middle of the book has Ben putting himself out in dangerous situations to solve Jorell's murder. The last part is Ben coming to terms with it and the healing process for all involved. With this novel Ben did major research whether by waiting for phone calls confirming dates, people, places, etc or just Googled everything. I found that very impressive. I look forward to reading his other books, don't let me down Ben. This book is certainly a tragedy as you will see. Looking at the whole picture drugs and guns DO NOT go together. You only become a statistic.
Thanks again for the book about Ben and Jorell.
October 26, 2023
Ben Westhoff meets Jorell Cleveland through the Big Brother Big Sister program and they become very close over the years, with Jorell staying at Ben's house at times and vacationing with him and his wife. However, as Jorell enters his older teenage years, Ben feels him becoming more distant as is so very common at that age. But nothing remains typical or normal - Ben receives a call that Jorell has been shot and died as a result of his injuries. Ben is devastated and makes it his mission to find out more about what he could have missed, the parts of Jorell that he didn't have access to in the most recent years, and to find out who killed Jorell. In this book, Ben reflects the complexity of who we each are as people and how our life circumstances and environment can contribute greatly to decisions that we make. The impact poverty, gang infrastructure, access to guns, and law enforcement have on society are all addressed, but Ben doesn't attempt to point fingers at one or two quick fixes or sources of the violence that leads to far too many young Black men dying. He embraces and acknowledges the complexity and interconnected nature of factors that often are associated with violence in the inner city. Ben doesn't make excuses for himself, Jorell, anyone else in Jorell's orbit, or society at large but rather forces us to see the whole picture and live in the uncomfortable reality that those we love don't always make the decisions we would like them to and that we aren't always what another person needs. But we are all worthy of love, of being understood, and of not being judged only by our worst decisions.
March 2, 2022
"Little Brother" by Ben Westhoff is the true story of Westhoff's Big Brother Big Sister relationship with his little brother Jorell Cleveland. While Westhoff moves around a bit throughout his life, and Jorell often visits him, most of the book takes place in St. Louis. Westhoff provides context about the deep poverty that exists in St. Louis, which has caused an explosion in drugs, guns, crime, and over-policing, which led to the deaths of Jorell and Michael Brown. The poverty that exists in St. Louis is not unique to this city, but Westhoff does discuss essentially the rise and fall of many St. Louis neighborhoods. This is the second book by Westhoff that I have read, and while I enjoy his writing and the subject manner about which he writes, I had a hard time with the way he describes his relationship with Jorell. While I appreciate Westhoff's high expectations for Jorell and how he went above and beyond to mentor Jorell, Westhoff's approach to Jorell is very much aligned with a white savior mentality. As Jorell grows older, he wants to rescue him, which is understandable, but Westhoff seems to make it more about what he thinks Jorell wants than perhaps what Jorell needs. He wants Jorell to trust him, but when he finds out the truth about Jorell, he takes it very personally. I'd consider reading more of Westhoff's future work, but this one left me wanting more.
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