National Network for Equitable Library Service

New York Times bestseller • From the governor of Maryland, the “compassionate” (People), “startling” (Baltimore Sun), “moving” (Chicago Tribune) true story of two kids with the same name: One went on to be a Rhodes Scholar, decorated combat veteran, White House Fellow, and business leader. The other is serving a life sentence in prison. The chilling truth is that his story could have been mine. The tragedy is that my story could have been his. In December 2000, the Baltimore Sun ran a small piece about Wes Moore, a local student who had just received a Rhodes Scholarship. The same paper also ran a series of articles about four young men who had allegedly killed a police officer in a botched armed robbery. One was named Wes Moore. Wes couldn’t shake off the unsettling coincidence, or the inkling that the two shared much more than space in the same newspaper. After following the story, he wrote a letter to the other Wes, now a convicted murderer serving a life sentence without parole. That letter led to a relationship that lasted several years. Through letters and prison visits, Wes discovered that the other Wes had lived a life much like his own: both had difficult childhoods, both were fatherless; they’d hung out on similar corners with similar crews, and both ran into trouble with the police. At key moments, their choices led to profoundly different destinies. Told in alternating dramatic narratives that span heart-wrenching losses and moments of surprising redemption, The Other Wes Moore tells the story of a generation of boys trying to find their way in a hostile world.