JUS BREATHE by B. Lynn Carter – Black Historical Fiction, 1960s Historical Fiction, Family Life Fiction

A young woman strives to survive without a home, even as she must fight herself and her instincts, in Jus Breathe by B. Lynn Carter.

“It’s more like I walked away,” I said, fractured memories of the day I left surging into my mind. “My mother married herself a husband. It’s like the tale of the evil stepfather, I guess.” The words were spilling out. “On the first day that we moved in with him, he almost broke my jaw. So I left. She had to let me; you know – the survival thing. She knew. We both knew.”

In New York City during the tempestuous 1960s, Dawn flees an abusive family situation after her father leaves the family and her mother remarries. Determined to stay in education, she couch-surfs with friends and explores her contacts through school. Dawn manages to live and even graduate. With the help of sympathetic teachers and a social worker who believes in her, she goes to college. Dawn finds friends and boyfriends and makes her own way toward adulthood.

And then her life goes awry again, though this time, she has a harder time choosing whether to run.

An overwhelming and toxic relationship with handsome Danny, a low-level drug dealer with ambitions, has Dawn making mistakes and second-guessing her plans, a journey made more complex with an accidental pregnancy. Throughout her young life, she’s had a term, “leaving time,” a point wherever she is and whomever she is with that indicates she has to gather her belongings and find a new situation. With a new life to take care of, Dawn finds that Danny ignores her own ambitions. Is it leaving time?

Despite the obstacles that she encounters on her journey toward adulthood, Dawn establishes her goals and works toward them, even though at times she seems to work against her best interests.

Dawn’s struggles to get through school and become an adult are harrowing and draw the reader to experience those struggles with her.

She remains relatable, with complicated reasons for the decisions she makes. Dawn’s world – specifically, her friends, her foes, and the people around her – are fully fleshed out, and the mysteries and surprises that she encounters, both pleasant and unpleasant, all work toward helping her grow into her own power.

Author B. Lynn Carter’s tale about a young woman growing up in a time of social unrest in a city in turmoil is heartwarming and thought-provoking, giving a glimpse into the trials and tribulations of young adulthood.