Product Description

All too often we hear about the dangers of male friendships, where peer pressure prevails over common sense. But rarely do we hear about another kind of male bonding, which, in the case of George Jenkins, Sampson Davis, and Rameck Hunt, led three boys to succeed beyond their wildest dreams.

Jenkins, Davis, and Hunt grew up in impoverished, broken families in Newark, New Jersey. Both Davis and Hunt served time in juvenile jails. But when Jenkins-who had a dream of becoming a dentist-learned about a program for minority students interested in careers in medicine, he convinced his two friends to apply and they vowed to get each other through. Despite the tremendous distractions and difficulties they faced, today two are doctors and one is a dentist.

Filled with drama, courage, temptation, and, ultimately, triumph, The Pact is a story about the potential in all of us, as well as the empowering strength of friendship. It provides hope to parents and inspiration to teenagers, teachers, and anyone who is comforted by knowing that we can, through friendship, rise to accomplish our dreams.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #159909 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05-27
• Released on: 2002-05-23
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Amazon.com Review
As teenagers from a rough part of Newark, New Jersey, Sampson Davis, Rameck Hunt, and George Jenkins had nothing special going for them except loving mothers (one of whom was a drug user) and above-average intelligence. Their first stroke of luck was testing into University High, one of Newark's three magnet high schools, and their second was finding each other. They were busy staying out of trouble (most of the time), and discovering the usual ways to skip class and do as little schoolwork as possible, when a recruitment presentation on Seton Hall University reignited George's childhood dream of becoming a dentist. The college was offering a tempting assistance package for minorities in its Pre-Medical/Pre-Dental Plus Program. George convinced his two friends to go to college with him. They would help each other through. None of them would be allowed to drop out and be reabsorbed by the Newark streets.

Although this inspiring and easy-to-read book would be enjoyed by any teenager or educator, it seems perfect for minority youth, especially young men of junior high and high school age, who may lack more immediate role models. If the ordinary boys who made this pact could survive college and medical school by sticking together, then so can others. --Regina Marler

From Publishers Weekly
Jenkins, Davis and Hunt grew up in and around the projects of Newark, N.J., a place decimated by crack. "The sounds of gunshots and screeching cars late at night and before dawn were as familiar to us as the chirping of insects must be to people who live in the country." The three attended high school together in the mid-'80s and made a pact to attend medical school together. "We didn't lock hands in some kind of empty, symbolic gesture... We just took one another at his word and headed back to class, without even a hint of how much our lives were about to change." Against incredible odds the almost complete absence of male role models, a history of substance abuse in two of the families, and even incarcerations the trio made good on their word and now practice medicine. Told in alternating first-person chapters, the story of these young men's struggle has remarkable clarity and insight. In extremely accessible prose, the authors articulate the problems they faced: "On the streets where I grew up, you didn't worry about consequences. If someone disrespected you, you beat his ass. Period," says Hunt; while Jenkins recalls, "Sometimes it felt surreal, walking past the drunks, dealers, and addicts on my way home from dental school with a pile of books." Although it is a memoir (which, by nature, is often self-serving), this book's agenda is far from hidden and its urgency is undeniable: through their pact, Davis, Jenkins and Hunt achieved success, and if they did it, others can, too. Agent, Joann Davis. (May 13) Forecast: Books about male friendship are rare. This fills the void nicely, and should be a strong seller, especially among African-American readers.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Adult/High School-This is the collective memoir of three 29-year-old African-American men from broken impoverished homes around Newark, NJ. Davis is an emergency-room physician, Hunt is an internist, and Jenkins is a dentist; each one takes a turn narrating a chapter. As teens, they made a pact to stick together through college and medical school, to help one another reach their goals. The advice they give is to work hard toward your objectives, avoid hanging out with those who will have a detrimental influence on you, and surround yourself with friends who have similar dreams and ambitions. The authors are frank about their mistakes, temporary failures, disappointments, and shortcomings. They started mentoring programs such as Ujima while they were still college freshmen, and today they run the Three Doctors Foundation. Many teens will be captivated by the men's accounts of their childhoods, their families, the street life that threatened to swallow them up, and how they helped one another succeed.
Joyce Fay Fletcher, Rippon Middle School, Prince William County, VA
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Uplifting!
There are times that I think my life was or still is hard. Well, I'm a black female who grew up in a middle-class home with two teachers as parents. College was as automatic as sleeping and eating. But, for these young men in the book "The Pact", college was as uncertain as winning the lottery. I always knew that our young black boys growing up in the inner-city had it super hard, but this book allowed me to see another side of our young brothas. They all have dreams as little kids, even though they don't see anyone in their neighborhood to emulate. Somehow, someway, Sampson Davis, Rameck Hunt and George Jenkins all found the determination to succeed and become doctors. Their positive story is proof that just one person can make a difference in a kid's life. Everyone needs someone to look up to; someone to follow.

We all have gifts we can share. Read this book and feel blessed that someone in your life took the time to mentor you and be there for you; not everyone has that in their lives. I am so proud of these young men! Not only are they smart and positive, but they are cute too! What a great combination! God has truly blessed them and their family.

What a refreshing book. Thanks to Tavis Smiley for recommending it on the Tom Joyner Show.

3 wonderful doctors who really know how to G-I-V-E
Writing a review for this book was a difficult task, not because of the content, but because most of what I want to say is already on the jacket of the book or has been said in another review. Then it hit me. Profile each character separately and then talk about how this book made me feel; so here goes. One of the three dreamed of becoming a dentist then persuaded his friends to apply to the Pre Medical - Pre Dental Plus program. Free college, free tutoring and help getting into dental school, the Pact was made. Neither of the three thought beyond the Pact. What would happen if one of us didn't make it, what would happen if one of us changed our minds?

Dr George Jenkins was born in South Carolina to George Jenkins, Sr. and Ella Jenkins Mack. At the age of two his parents divorced, mother and two sons moved to Newark, New Jersey. George was the curious one; his curiosity was peaked by his third grade teacher Viola Johnson. She took the class to see Broadway plays, and gave them some culture and taught them to have respect for themselves. She constantly told the class, get those degrees! get those degrees!

Dr. Sampson Davis born in 1973 to Ruthener Davis in Beth Israel Hospital in Newark, NJ. His mom married Kenneth Davis at the early age of fifteen and divorced him ten years later. Sam was very popular in his neighborhood, he loved numbers and of the three he was the analyst. He was also the man-child whom his mother looked to for things she couldn't do like reading her mail and making bank deposits to pay the bills.

Dr. Rameck Hunt also born in 1973 lived with his mother and grandmother he called Ma. He was the skeptical one of the three. Both his parent were strung out on drugs at one time or another.

These three inner city youths beat the odds placed at their feet. They knew how to count their blessing and recognize an angel when he or she walked into their lives. The Pre-Medical /Pre-Dental Plus program was and still is one of the programs under EOP (Educational Opportunity Program) If you have a dream don't allow anyone to snatch that from you. You too can become a doctor don't aim for the sky reach above it. Go on make your Pact today and prove them all wrong who said you couldn't. I loved this book and recommend it to everyone...

Should be required reading for teachers,politiciansand kids
As an African American women I know how hard being Black in this country is on a daily basis. I also know that our young males have an extremely tough time as they try to discover what manhood means in a world of hustlers and hard times. And this book so solidified to me what it is that politicians, administrators and teachers don't get - these kids are not inherently bad, stupid, lazy or dangerous. They are children, some of whom have parents with desires for their children but no understanding of how to guide them. They are children without mothers and/or fathers. They are children who had to raise themselves. They are children who had to decide at an early age how to survive long enough to make it home from school Who had to make decisions about who to be based on the gang colors of their neighborhood.

Why don't we have more doctors, lawyers, scientists, etc.? The answer lies on pages 177-78 where Dr. Davis talks about having never held a stethoscope until he was in medical school. Doctor visits were few and far between for him as a kid. How is a child supposed to identify his desire if all he is exposed to his what stands on the corner near his house. Why do many Black students fail to graduate? That answer is on page 217 when again Dr. Davis describes how after 4 years of pre-med and 4 more years in medical school no one had bothered to tell him about the National Resident Matching Program. How are you supposed to know is someone doesn't help you.

The most amazing thing about their stories is that even with all of the support from family members, teacher and counselors they all came dangerously close to still not making it through as the constant tugs from the street, their friends and family, society continuously made them hesitant and doubtful.

This should be required reading for everyone from school administrators to parents, politicians, students and the President. We have much work to do.