Scratch Beginnings: Me, $25, and the Search for the American Dream

by Adam Shepard Narrated by Peter Berkrot

Overview

What can you get with twenty-five dollars and a dream?

Adam Shepard graduated from college feeling disillusioned by the apathy around him and was then incensed after reading Barbara Ehrenreich's famous work Nickel and Dimed-a book that gave him a feeling of hopelessness about the working class in America. He set out to disprove Ehrenreich's theory-the notion that those who start at the bottom stay at the bottom-by making something out of nothing to achieve the American Dream.

Shepard's plan was simple. With a sleeping bag, the clothes on his back, and $25 in cash, and restricted from using his contacts or college education, he headed out for Charleston, South Carolina, a randomly selected city, with one objective: to work his way out of homelessness and into a life that would give him the opportunity for success. His goal was to have, after one year, $2,500, a working automobile, and a furnished apartment.

Scratch Beginnings is the earnest and passionate account of Shepard's struggle to overcome the pressures placed on the homeless. His story will not only inspire listeners, but will also remind them that success can come to anyone who is willing to work hard-and that America is still one of the most hopeful countries in the world.

Editorial Reviews

In the summer of 2006, recent college graduate Adam Shepard decided to see if he could establish himself in a year, starting with nothing more than a sleeping bag, the clothes on his back, and $25 in his pocket. To validate this test case, Shepard ruled out using previous contacts or relying on his diploma. Not surprisingly, things didn't go as well as hoped; before long, Shepard was selling his blood for money. Eventually though, his perseverance achieved its just reward, thus providing us with a gritty memoir of hard-won success.

Library Journal

Recent college graduate Shepard is tired of hearing people complain about what they don't have. In this rebuttal to Barbara Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed and Bait and Switch, he sets off to see how far he can get by starting in Charleston, SC, with $25 and the clothes on his back. His goal is to finish 365 days later with a functioning car, a furnished apartment, and $2500 and be in a position to continue improving his circumstances. Along the way, he lives in a homeless shelter, befriends some interesting characters, and learns things the hard way. Shepard is wise to acknowledge the factors that play to his advantage in his experiment (e.g., he's healthy and does not have a dependent family). This story may inspire young people to realize how one's attitudes and foundational beliefs about society can influence where one goes in life. Shepard's conclusions and recommendations seem a bit simplistic but do not significantly detract from the book's overall impact. Recommended for public, high school, and undergraduate libraries.
—Elizabeth L. Winter

Publishers Weekly

Shepard, a business management major from Merrimack College in Massachu­setts, woke up one morning and decided he wanted to be homeless. He would set out with the clothes on his back and a couple of bills in his pocket and try to prove that, without drawing upon his education, it was still possible to become a success in the land of opportunity. Narrator Peter Berkrot delivers a stellar performance, embodying Shepard during each stage of his captivating journey and delivering an intensely intimate performance that is as subtle as it is unabashed and raw. Berkrot’s tone is that of a hardworking man who refuses to be broken down by society no matter what life throws at him. It’s compelling and earnest, hilarious at times, while devastatingly sad at others. Berkrot ably steps into Shepard’s shoes as the author steps into the shoes of the poorest of the poor in America today. A Harper Perennial paperback. (Nov.)

From the Publisher

"Don't believe the naysayers. The American dream---the fable that says if you work hard and follow the rules, you'll make it---is alive and well." ---New York Post

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171302146
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Publication date:	11/21/2011
Edition description:	Unabridged

Read an Excerpt

Scratch Beginnings

Chapter One

Welcome to Crisis Ministries

Tuesday, July 25

There was nobody there.

There has always been somebody there to greet me. After every trip I've taken, it's either been Ma or Pops, a friend, a girlfriend, or, once, even a professor.

But not that night.

Nope. All that welcomed me was the humid evening air of Charleston, South Carolina, the rancid smell of urine leaking from the stalls of the train station's restrooms, and a scruffy looking man gripping a plastic cup half full with coins. That night, I was greeted by a totally new world.

But that was to be expected. I had been preparing for the unpleasant insecurity of this first night ever since my brother had dropped me off earlier in the day at the Amtrak station in Raleigh on his way to work. I had been preparing for my first moment of freedom for far longer than I could remember.

There are plenty of ways to get from Raleigh to Charleston, the city that I had randomly picked out of a hat of twelve other southeastern U.S. cities. You can drive or fly or hitchhike or take the bus. The ambitious, I suppose, could bike or run, but this wasn't that kind of journey. I chose the train because, economically speaking, it was the most efficient choice. And really, I chose to ride the rail for selfish reasons. I didn't want to have to bother with goodbyes once I got to South Carolina's premier port city. Surely whoever dropped me off would have hung over my shoulder for a while to make sure everything was okay.

And I'm glad I chose the train. Even if I had somehow known ahead of time that the ride would beuncomfortable and would arrive three hours late in Charleston, I still would have chosen the train. As it wound along Garner Road, the slow pace of southbound train number 5630 gave me an opportunity to say farewell to my previous life. Yep, that's the same Garner Road that takes you past the YMCA where I lifted weights with Bill, Charles, and Rod and where Jack had taught me how to shoot three-pointers with remarkable precision when I was just twelve years old. It goes past Rock Quarry Road, which takes you to Southeast Raleigh High School where Mr. Geraghty had inspired me to maintain my dreams on the basketball court but to also hold on to my education as a safety net, and past Aversboro Road, which will bring you to within fifty feet of the front doorstep of the home where I grew up. It goes past a collection of fast food joints and retail shops where I ate and shopped, but never worked, and past the sun-tanned tobacco fields that represent a lifestyle far beyond my comprehension, even for a boy from the South.

And now, here I was, alone in Charleston at the corner of Rivers and Durant, wondering if it would be wiser for me to go left or right or if pitching camp under the overpass for the night would be my best option. After all, it was getting late. At least I assumed it was getting late. The actual time? Couldn't have told you. But it was well after dark, and I hadn't seen one person since I had walked away from the train station.

A big-body, black Oldsmobile with tinted windows glided by with a suspiciously high regard of the speed limit.

The tattered map of Charleston that I had found on a vacant seat at the train station was going to prove to be useful. With it, I could more or less find my way on my own. Without it, I would be left to rely on the advice of strangers for guidance.

My first order of business was to find a comfortable place to sleep. Shoot, it didn't even have to be a comfortable place to sleep—just a place, a relatively safe place. As far as I could tell from the assortment of landmarks dispersed throughout the peninsula on the map, the action was happening south of my current location. Perhaps I was being naïve in what could have been a crucial mistake, but I figured that the excitement and opportunity of my new homeland were directly correlated. With excitement came opportunity, and I was looking for opportunity. Left it was.

After walking down Rivers Avenue, and walking some more down Rivers Avenue, the notion of time still hadn't hit me, especially with the expected 6:47 p.m. arrival time of the train prolonged. All I knew was it was dark out—pitch-black dark—and Murphy's Law had thrown off my mental preparations for the trip. A guy asked if I had any spare change.

"No, sorry," I said. I thought about retaliating with, "Do you have some for me? Cuz, uh, I'm actually running a little short myself." But, of course, I didn't. I had always accepted and even appreciated the vagrants that strung a guitar or blew on a saxophone or showcased some other talent at the park or at a subway stop underground, but I had never had any respect for the laziness of beggars.

The sign under Johnson's Chiropractic Clinic illuminated 10:14 and eighty-one degrees. Wendy's and Captain D's Seafood appeared on the right, and my nerves began to ease. Finally! Something familiar. With a little more bounce in my step and determination in my mind, I made the executive—yet uneducated—decision to keep hiking toward downtown for my first night of sleep.

The nagging barks of dogs cooped up in distant neighborhoods didn't bother me as much as the cars whizzing by at blistering speeds. But then again, even the cars didn't bother me as much as the lightning. Terrific! Lightning. Murphy was on a roll.

Or was that just heat lightning? What is heat lightning anyway? Is that the lightning that strikes between clouds or between a cloud and the air? Is it going to rain?

Scratch Beginnings. Copyright © by Adam Shepard. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.

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