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Forgiven: A Life's
Journey from Pain to Peace
by
Rene Munoz-Ledo and
Ghost Author: Rosalia Munoz-Ledo Koba, MFT
SPOTLIGHT BOOK REVIEWS |
STUDENT REACTIONS
 Winner of the 15th Annual Carl
Sandburg Literacy Arts Award for Non-Fiction
states:
"Rene Munoz-Ledo was a homeboy of mine. Like
many of my homeboys, he ended up in the dark end
of a long gang and drug life. But he also had a
loving family and a loving heart. And along the
way he found a pathway to the Creator, In the
end, these were the things that won out. This is
evident in this book, a testimony to the
resilience and strength Rene had even through
his darkest days. I honor his commitment and
contribution. To live richly, even with the
hardships, and to tell the tale--there's healing
there for all of us. I know his words will reach
out and save many lives."
Luis J. Rodriquez, author of Always
Running: La Vida Loca, Gang Days in LA.
"In this intensely personal
account of his descent into the quagmire of
drugs and crime, and then his long struggle to
redeem himself and find peace in his heart, Rene
Munoz-Ledo proves himself to be one of those
"everyday heroes" whose struggle we need to
recognize and celebrate. Not an eloquent or
well-educated writer, Rene has compensated for
what he may have lacked in literary style by
opening his soul for the world to see the man
inside. His deathbed wish was that the sharing
of his story would spare others the pain he
endured before attaining a final peace. After
reading his story, you will find yourself
saying, "I wish I'd had the chance to meet
Rene."
Dr. Rom Dempsey, Former/Retired Executive
Director of Pupil Services for a large
California Public School District
Rene's powerful
message of the devastation of addiction and
disease is a bombshell of a book. It's hard
hitting and doesn't pull any punches. As you
read the words of Rene, you're given a visual
and heart wrenching depiction of the pain,
sorrow and the awakening of the human spirit and
how it reaches out and touches our soul. This is
not an easy read, but informative and
inspirational.
Bill Beacham, Ph.D., Executive Director of
Drug-Free Communities
(Bill continues his endorsement
in chapter seven of this book at the end of the
commentary section where he relates Rene's life
to a Native-American Grandfather, who tells the
story of two wolves to his grandson.)
STUDENT REACTIONS
TO THE BOOK
 The
reason I liked Forgiven is because there
are some parts that are related to me. Some
things that he has been through I have also been
through. It helped me by thinking about my life
and thinking about the positive side of me. Rene
said, I didn’t know I was such a good person now
that I am clean but now it’s too late because I
am dying." It makes me think about my future.
Now I know, I can have a good life and that I
need to keep focusing on my positive side.
If other people read this book it will help
them think about their life, too. Rene helped me
appreciate my family and all the people that are
helping me. I found my positive part by being in
the Explorers and that has been helping me a
lot. My goals are to graduate from college and
get a good career in law enforcement. I want to
do this to try to save my community from gangs
and drugs. I want to make a program for gangs
and drug prevention so the young people can talk
about their problems and talk about why they
might think gangs are cool. I want to help
educate them. Kids need someone positive to look
up to like role models, and they need someone to
talk to about their problems. My program would
be able to give mentors to the kids. The program
I would develop would be called "Saving the Community." The leaders would be the
young people to teach them to be part of the
solution to the community problems of drugs and
gangs!
Marcos Hernandez; November 1, 2006
REACTION IN SPANISH BY MARCOS
La razón porque me gusto Perdonado,
es porque hay varias partes que yo puedo
relacionarme. Algunas cosas que le paso a Rene,
también me paso a mi. Me ayuda a pensar de mi
vida y de mi lado positivo. Rene dijo que el no
sabia que era una persona tan buena hasta que
estaba limpio de drogas pero ya fue muy tarde
para el y se estaba muriendo. Me hace pensar de
mi futuro. Ahora se que yo puedo tener una vida
buena y necesito enfocar en mi lado positivo.
Si otras personas leen este libro, también
les va ayudar a pensar de su vida. Rene me ayudó
a apreciar mi familia y a toda la gente que me
esta ayudando. Encontré mi lado positivo siendo
parte de los Explorers (son jóvenes que entrenan
con los policías) y que me han ayudado muchísimo.
Mi meta es ser un policía y trabajar con la ley.
Quiero hacer esto para tratar de salvar a mi
comunidad de drogas y palomillas. Quiero empezar
un programa de prevención para las drogas y
pandillas para que los jóvenes puedan hablar de
sus problemas y hablar porque ellos creen que es
chido pertenecer a una pandilla. Yo quiero
ayudar a educarlos. Chicos necesitan un modelo
positivo y necesitan hablar con alguien de sus
problemas.
Mi programa daría mentores a estos jóvenes.
Yo llamaría este programa: "Salvando La
Comunidad." Los líderes serian los jóvenes
para enseñarles como pueden ser parte de la
solución de los problemas de drogas y pandillas
en la comunidad.
Marcos Hernández, Recipiente del
Reconocimiento de la Beca de la Fundación del
Libro de Rene Muñoz-Ledo, junio, 2006
 I read Forgiven. I liked the violence
and the relationship he shared with his "puppy
love" Cassie. All these stories kept my
interest. I even wrote a book report for my
English class. I learned that it’s never good to
get in trouble because something bad always
comes from it. I learned how to respect other
people. He would always have respect for his
friends but his friends did not have respect for
him. Then you realize that these people are not
your real friends. Drugs are not good for you
and sooner or later they will kill you.
It hit me when Cassie cheated on him. I think
a lot of guys go through this pain. It taught me
to be careful who you trust. And what you think
is love may really just be an adventure. The
greatest message is don’t use drugs and don’t
get involved in gangs. They say they have your
back but they really don’t. It’s better to be
alone than with bad influences. Now, I am
a volunteer for the fire department in Tijuana. My
goal is to join the academy when I turned 18.
Rene said it is important to have a goal and
to be disciplined, which is what I am doing. If
you do the right thing in life, then life will be
easier. You don’t have to make bad choices to
impress your friends because sooner or later
they’ll be gone. Rene also said that none of his
friends visited him in jail or came to see him
when he was dying. I am making sure I don’t hang
around with people who do drugs because then the
temptation is there.
Pancho Covarrubias
REACTION IN SPANISH BY PANCHO
Yo leí Perdonado. Me gusto la
violencia y la relación que el tuvo con su
primer amor. Todas las historias de Rene mantuvo
mi interés. Hasta escribí un papel sobre el
libro para mi clase de ingles. Aprendí que nunca
es bueno meterte en problemas porque cosas malas
siempre resultan. Aprendí a respetar otra gente.
Rene siempre tenia respeto para sus amigos, pero
sus amigos no siempre le daban respeto a el. Y
después aprendes que realmente no eran tus
amigos. Las drogas no son buenas para ti, y
temprano o tarde te van a matar.
Me pego muy duro cuando Kacie lo traiciono.
Yo creo que muchos chicos pasan por este dolor.
Me enseño que tienes que tener cuidado a quien
le tienes confiancilla y que lo que tu crees que
es amor, puede ser alo mejor solamente una
aventura. Los miembros de las pandillas dicen
que te van a cuidar tu espalda, pero no lo hacen.
Es mejor solo que mal acompañado. Horita, yo soy
un voluntario para los bomberos en Tijuana,
México. Mi meta es inscribirme en la academia de
bomberos cuando tenga 18 años.
Rene dijo que es muy importante tener metas y
ser disciplinado y es lo que yo estoy haciendo.
No necesitas hacer malas decisiones para
impresionar a tus amigos porque al rato no los
vuelves a ver. Rene también dijo que ninguno de
sus amigos lo fue a ver a la cárcel ni lo fueron
a visitar cuando estaba muriendo. Las únicas
personas que estaban allí para el fue su familia.
Yo estoy seguro que no voy andar con personas
que toman drogas porque así la tentación no va
estar presente.
Pancho Covarrubias. Noviembre, 2006
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