Remembering Moz, Gracie & John Hampton’s First-Born
by Codis Hampton II

Remembering Moz: author’s thoughts, on why anyone should buy this book.

• It’s a book about a unique father and son relationship. It’s an emotional read on how that relationship evolved over a forty-four-year timeline. You learn how his father joined the great migration of black folks from Jim Crows segregated south to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The author (son) takes you through Moz’s roots up through detailing how his life mattered to his family, friends, and acquaintances.
• The story narrated by the author, who happens to be Moz’s son. It reveals how love, respect, grew and nurtured over the years that a son has for his father. In an age when it’s often said black fathers are absent from their children’s lives. This book dispels that notion. You get a real-life experience of how a boy became the man his father imagined him to be in his mind.
• A tribute to fatherhood, it shows readers how a small-town backwoods country boy moved to a mid-west city and carved out a living for him and his family. Amid divorce, death, and a rebellious son, Moz guides his family with a stern hand and tough love while setting an example of being a family breadwinner. The result is this book authored by his son.
• A story of Responsibility, Passion, Love with historical references dating all that way back to the Civil War. An old school black father shows you how he raised a family regardless of circumstances. The toll it took on him can be read and understood page by page by page.
• This story shows it does matter how you start your life. Your ancestry and family structure is vitally important to how you react to certain issues as a man. You see how a down-home southern country upbringing can transform a boy into a family man.
• It’s a wild ride narrated by the son of Moz. Although the leading character dies too soon, there is a forty-four-year period in which a son finally understands his father. He finally gets it as he starts a family of his own. Yet, his father was never too far away to provide on the spot lessons in life. The issue or circumstance didn’t matter as much as the man delivering the advice. At one point the author wishes he could attend the same school of life as his father. Because that man knew everything about everything was the reasoning given by his son.
• It’s a black thing, y’all. This is a book about a country boy’s upbringing built on a solid foundation. You don’t have to look hard to find love, respect, and honor for those who came before us. One fact is certain; you have no idea where you are going if you don’t know where you’ve been. Family History is vitally important in determining who you are. Who better to tell this personal story about his father than his son?