Like one of the main characters in his new novel “Surviving in America,” Evanston resident and author Curtis Webley was born in Jamaica and raised by his grandmother, who taught him the value of perseverance.
“My grandmother instilled a sense of discipline in me at a very early age,” Webley, 49, said after speaking to a group of about 24 people at the Evanston Library, 1703 Orrington Ave., Sunday afternoon. “You have to believe in what you want, and you have to go get it, pursue your dreams.”
The lesson is a theme in Webley’s book, which chronicles the experiences of two young Jamaican men who immigrate to the United States.
One of the characters, Amin, is based on Webley. Amin perseveres through the trials of being an immigrant by seeking an education to better his life. The other main character, Ragweed, takes a very different route.
“[Ragweed] epitomizes many people I know who took the easy way out,” Webley said. “This may have been through drugs … leading to imprisonment and death.”
The Evanston Library organized Sunday’s event, which featured a short speech by Webley followed by a question-and-answer session. Signed copies of Webley’s book were for sale.
The library organizes many adult programs like the lecture to encourage people to become interested in reading, said Glennis Lundberg, a volunteer program coordinator.
“People like to meet authors,” Lundberg said. “It’s a nice service to them and encouragement to the authors.”
On Sunday, Webley’s speech focused on the theme of perseverance.
“When we climb a hill,” he said to the group, “there is no one behind us to raise us if we stumble. And there is no one ahead to pull us up if we get tired.”
Perseverance has been important in Webley’s life, he said. He immigrated to the United States in 1975 at the age of 19 to live with his mother in Evanston. He received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Roosevelt University and a master’s degree in taxation.
After college, Webley struggled for eight years to find employment. He stuck with it, although many people told him to seek another profession.
“I didn’t waver from my grandmother’s teaching,” he said.
Writing was also a challenge for Webley, who struggled with grammar. Once again, he said, hard work and perseverance helped him to succeed. He “perfected [his] craft” by writing letters to the editors of his favorite magazines. When the letter was published, he studied the grammatical changes that the editors made.
“I tried to capitalize on their corrections of what I was doing wrong,” Webley said. “Finally I reached a point where they would publish the letters verbatim.”
Today Webley lives in Evanston with his wife and five children. He is an adjunct professor in accounting at several Chicago area colleges and the owner of Webley’s Accounting Services in Evanston, he said.
“The road to success is not easy,” Webley said. “In the confrontation between rock and stream, the stream will always win — not because it is stronger but because it always hits the rock in the same place. It is persistent. This is so in the novel.”
Reach Lindsay Minnema at [email protected]
