Ta-Nehisi Coates

Ta-Nehisi Coates is the author of The Beautiful Struggle, a memoir about his formative years during elementary school and high school. The memoir ends when Ta-Nehisi was accepted to the prestigious Howard University and arrived for his first day. Ta-Nehisi is the sixth of Paul Coates’s seven children. Paul had seven children by four women but the kids didn’t make any distinctions. They were all sisters and brothers and enjoyed each other’s company when they were together which was usually on the weekends at the family home in the rough section of the city known as West Baltimore.

Ta-Nehisi was a shy young boy who preferred to stay indoors and play video games. His older brother, Big Bill, enjoyed the lure of the street more which at times got him into trouble. Ta-Nehisi wanted no part of trouble. Acting up in the classroom...