A Chance in the World

“Pemberton’s beautifully told story is a rags to richesjourney—beginning in a place and with a jarring set of experiences that couldhave destroyed his life. But Steve’s refusal to give in to those forces, andhis resolve to create a better life, shows a courage and resilience that is anexample for many of us to follow.” —Stedman Graham, Author, Educator

Home is the place where our life stories begin. It is wherewe are understood, embraced, and accepted. It is a sanctuary of safety andsecurity, a place to which we can always return. Down in the dank basement,amid my moldy, hoarded food and worm-eaten books, I dreamed that my real home,the place where my story had begun, was out there somewhere, and one day I wasgoing to find it.

Taken from his mother at age three, Steve Klakowicz lives aterrifying existence. Caught in the clutches of a cruel foster family andsubjected to constant abuse, Steve finds his only refuge in a box of booksgiven to him by a kind stranger. In these books, he discovers new worlds he canonly imagine and begins to hope that one day he might have a differentlife—that one day he will find his true home. A fair-complexioned boy with blueeyes, a curly Afro, and a Polish last name, he is determined to unravel themystery of his origins and find his birth family. Armed with just a singleclue, Steve embarks on an extraordinary quest for his identity, only to learnthat nothing is as it appears. A Chancein the World is the unbelievably true story of a wounded and broken boydestined to become a man of resilience, determination, and vision. Through itall, Steve’s story teaches us that no matter how broken our past, no matter howgreat our misfortunes, we have it in us to create a new beginning and to builda place where love awaits.