Domestic by Nikkea Smithers
I just finished "Domestic" and that is one awesome book. That book really brought out a lot of emotions. I really felt sorry for Jamal the way Monica would treat him at the beginning of the book.
Truth be told, he was late picking her up because he had been across town putting his resume in at a potential employer. She wouldn't see it that way even if he told her. She never did. She only saw what she wanted to see and at the moment, that was him being late. (p.5)
Jamal wasn't a perfect man. He definitely had issues:
It was too late. She had laid her hands on him. He jumped up gripping her by the shoulders slamming her into the wall. His eyes turned a shade of amber red that frightened her. "You want to die tonight?" was the first response that Jamal had made all evening. Animosity grew inside of him that he could not immediately relate to. It was as though he was looking out of himself and someone else was becoming this violent beast. (p.7)
I know you wonder how I could feel sorry for a man that does something like that. I know what he did wasn't right, but he was trying and she just didn't see it. You will have to read the book to see why I really felt sorry for him.
Monica is Jamal's wife. She loved Jamal but hated him at the same time. I can see her point of view too. It had to be hard to have a husband that wasn't working and all he did was want to drink. She is just such a nag though. Jamal tries and she doesn't even notice.
I personally know the effects that being unemployed has on a person. It is rough. You feel so down that you don't have a job and can't provide for your family like you know you can. It's frustrating when you put in application after application and nobody seems to want you. This issue is very real and unfortunately, too many people are experiencing this. I am lucky and never had issues of physical abuse in my life though.
Simone is their daughter. She had her own issues too, growing up was hard watching the way her parents acted. She seems destined to go down the same road that her parents were on. She meets a boy named Stanley. She takes him home to meet her parents and they see he is more of a man than a boy. Simone and Stanley have their own drama in this book as well. As far as Simone and Stanley, I almost cried for her. I swear I had tears in my eyes. I loved the poems in the book too.
Nikkea Smithers did an awesome job writing this book and it honestly could not have been any better!
