A Product of a Pimp and a Prostitute

“A Product of a Pimp and a Prostitute” is an inspirational memoir about the topic of forgiveness written from the point of view of an adult daughter as a letter to her biological mother. Reared by her maternal grandmother - Hazel - Charles Lisa confronts her mother Deborah on her absence in her life growing up and outlines all the limited and negative interactions she has had with her as a child and into adulthood.

Recalling memories from her youth, Charles Lisa stirs up past feelings of neglect, embarrassment and despair over the knowledge of having a mother with a life-long, criminal record and a debilitating drug addiction. She tells this story by sharing her experiences, her mother’s jailhouse letters, stories told by her elders throughout the years and, most importantly, her belief in God.

The book’s pivotal moment occurs when the author offers the gift of forgiveness to her mother and demonstrates how her mother and other readers can benefit from God’s forgiveness, self-forgiveness, forgiving others and accepting forgiveness from those who offend them to have a more fulfilling life.