The Will To Rise: How to persevere in the face of adversity

A story like no other.

An individual like no other.

An experience like no other.

Will's story is far from ordinary. It's a narrative shaped by a harrowing cycle of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse, and the dogged determination to rise from them all. Born in Haiti, Will was pronounced dead three times as a babe and spent much of his infancy in and out of hospital. He was too young to recall the day his mother left the country in search of the American Dream, entrusting him to the shared care of his grandmother and older sisters. His mother’s return visits were a mix of exciting gifts and stern discipline, often accompanied by harsh punishments. Will never meet his father. What he knew of him, he learned from the community -- that his dad was a well-respected gynecologist who had fathered many other children. Thankfully, there were moments of respite for Will. His childhood memories of visiting his grandmother’s home in the Haitian countryside were largely joyful -- climbing trees, picking mangoes and coconuts, savouring freshly squeezed cow’s milk, and exhilarating over the risk of driving into the rock-studded waters from the cliffs above. That was until his beloved grandmother died. From there, young Will, already exposed to experiences no child should have to endure, began the long battle to better himself. The trouble is, sometimes things must get worse before they get better.

Will’s journey leads him along a path that stretches from escaping Haiti to a stint in an American detention center, and even a terrifying life-threatening ordeal after being held at gunpoint by Canadian police during a case of mistaken identity. This book touches on themes of child sexual abuse, black men’s incarceration, domestic violence, and mental health. It is a story that will etch itself into your memory and leave you marvelling over the power of the human spirit to rise, and keep rising.