When You're Ready - by Kareem Rosser (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Kareem Rosser and Lee Lee Jones were young, beautiful, and deeply in love. Their love was a real-world romance that felt like a fairy tale: Kareem was raised in the Bottom--one of the most impoverished neighborhoods in Philadelphia--while Lee Lee was raised in the wealth of the Pennsylvania suburbs. They met and fell in love in the world of horses: Kareem, a nationally ranked polo player and Lee Lee, a legacy equestrian. The world was at their feet, a lifetime of joy and adventure ahead of them. But their love story is interrupted by a devastating accident, which almost costs Lee Lee her life, and destroys every plan and dream that Lee Lee and Kareem had made together. ... [This book] is a narrative that honors love in all its forms: first love, parental love, renewed love, and, most importantly, self-love. With notes on unresolved loss and second chances, it's a story that will grab you by the heartstrings and uplift your soul"--

Book Synopsis

This unforgettable and "beautifully written" (The Seattle Times) memoir explores first love, unthinkable loss, and the toll of grief.

Kareem Rosser and Lee Lee Jones were young, beautiful, and deeply in love. Their love was a real-world romance that felt like a fairy tale: Kareem was raised in the Bottom--one of the most impoverished neighborhoods in Philadelphia--while Lee Lee was raised in the wealth of the Pennsylvania suburbs. The world was at their feet, a lifetime of joy and adventure ahead of them. But their love story was interrupted by a devastating accident, which almost cost Lee Lee her life, and destroyed every plan and dream that Lee Lee and Kareem had made together.

In the months and years that follow, while Lee Lee struggles to heal, Kareem is crippled by ambiguous grief, for the woman that he loves and for the future he imagined for them both. In the space between debilitating depression and bursts of anxiety, he's forced to finally face his demons: his tumultuous childhood, his latent mental health issues, the murders of his older brother and his best friend, and a life constantly lived in the grip of panic and fear.

"Relatable, powerful, and transformative" (Booklist, starred review), When You're Ready is a narrative that honors love in all its forms: first love, parental love, renewed love, and, most importantly, self-love. With notes on unresolved loss and second chances, it's a story that will grab you by the heartstrings and uplift your soul.

Review Quotes

"This book slayed me... I'm obsessed!" --Zibby Owens, host of Totally Booked with Zibby

"This moving memoir explores how life and love rarely pan out the way we plan it... Beautifully written, [WHEN YOU'RE READY] is a tribute to love in all its manifestations."--The Seattle Times

"[an] exemplary work of creative non-fiction... Rosser's writing is relatable, powerful, and transformative." -Booklist, starred review

"An unpretentious page-turner, Rosser's story of loss and metamorphosis illuminates new facets of the meaning of love -- and what can happen if we push through our fears of loss to grab it." -Diana Helmuth, author of The Witching Year

"Rosser is a great American storyteller. He bears witness with a soft soulful eye and an ethical heart, both mighty and humble all at once." -Quiara Hudes, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and author