A Letter to Jacqueline: My Detroit Childhood Memoirs

A Letter to Jacqueline: My Detroit Childhood Memoirs, Eric takes a powerful step away from fiction and steps boldly into truth. This deeply personal memoir explores his upbringing in one of Detroit’s most unpredictable and emotionally complex environments—Dumbarton Street and The Smith Homes Housing Projects on the city’s Northwest side. Through raw recollections and vivid storytelling, he sheds light on the people, places, and pain that shaped his youth.

Unlike his debut, this project wasn’t built on imagination—it was built on memories. A Letter to Jacqueline is a heartfelt tribute to a mother’s influence, a young boy’s struggles, and the life lessons that often come the hard way. Eric opens up about moments of love and loss, joy and trauma, faith and failure. He speaks candidly about surviving poverty, broken systems, and the ever-present sting of racism—a reality he faced growing up as a Black child in a divided city.

This memoir goes beyond personal reflection—it challenges the current generation to consider what’s being lost. Through his lens, Eric shares what children today are missing: the structure, discipline, and community that once held neighborhoods together. He speaks directly to young people and their parents, reflecting on how the values that shaped his survival have slowly faded from view.

Woven through it all is a sharp awareness of the strange world of politics—both local and national—that quietly shaped the backdrop of his upbringing. From the policies that failed his community to the silent forces that widened the gaps, Eric doesn't shy away from the hard truths.

This memoir isn’t just a personal account—it’s a blueprint for survival, a time capsule of Detroit through the ’60s, ’70s, ’80s, and early ’90s, and a reminder of the unbreakable bond between a mother and her child—a closeness that shapes you forever and teaches you that in this life, you only get one.

Author Eric Wright