After Tupac and D Foster

Me and Neeka live across the street from each other in Queens in a neighborhood where people know each other and watch out for each other and there is a whole lot of love on the front stoop. The girls don't leave their neighborhood but their lives are about to change when D walks into their world and becomes their new friend. They don't know her whole name but they do know she can roam the city as she pleases and that she is a foster child who has finally found a place to belong. Neeka has a big family which includes Tash, an African American queen, and Jay Jones, who is hoping to make his place in the world through a basketball scholarship to a good college. The story explores Neeka's hope that she can be "someone" when she grows up, and D's search to "belong" and everyone's journey toward a "Big Purpose." Tupac has a big purpose and his songs resonate with the characters in the story. They follow his career and feel mirrored by his words and deeply sorrowed by his difficult ending. Racism and respect for others are the heartbeat of this page turner.