(Reviewed by JD Jung)
“I wish I could tell them how hard it was. How hard it still is. I wish I could tell them that just because a person doesn’t understand what it means to be broken doesn’t mean they can’t tell they aren’t whole. “
This young man plagued with the label of bring “special” (that is, mentally ill), thought that life only existed in his small town he referred to as “Nowhere” in a “pass-through” state. This belief that no one ever wanted to leave this town was challenged when his older sister decided to move to the city.
His world did expand though, when he visited Ferguson, Missouri after the fatal police shooting of teenager Michael Brown.
“The collective emotion was as fluid as a wave that swept across Ferguson with each new piece of information. Rage. Exasperation. Primal fear. You never really knew what sort of day it was going to be. And that was the scariest thing of all.” He understood mothers’ fears and the pain of a community.
As his family continues to fall apart with the death of family members, his world slowly crumbles. Who will take care of him?
“The whole world, everybody but me, knew I had these problems and nobody ever sat e down and taught me how to live. Nobody ever tried. I’m stuck now. I never know if I’m right or wrong. My heart and my brain are archenemies, and sometimes I don’t know if it’s me making decisions. But what can I do? Who can I trust? Who in the world knows me better than I know me? “
The reason I am sharing so many quotes in this moving novella, is to give you examples of the powerful emotions expressed in this young man’s journey as he navigates life growing up poor, black and mentally handicapped. Even though he is “slow” he is aware, maybe more than most of us. He is given a poignant voice, even when he is dissecting everyday activities.
Even though Torment is only 126 pages, author H.D. Hunter succeeds in providing a moving story that will stay with you long after you finish reading the book.
