Full Cirles by Kenneth D. Thompson Sr.

A poignant reflection on parental absence and how deep a wound can go

What does it do to a man to be raised without a father?

For some, it leaves them feeling lost forever, waiting for something that won’t return and searching for it in all the wrong places. For others, it becomes the catalyst to a life of determination and hard work. Luckily for Kenneth Thompson Sr., his life mirrors the latter.

After growing up not knowing his father, despite living in the same area as him in Austin, Texas, he reflects on the trials he endured and how they shaped him into the person he is today. With a personal flair that feels like hearing the life story of a beloved uncle, Thompson’s memoir Full Circles gives readers an honest look at his life and how the absence of a father figure touched almost every aspect of it. Both deeply personal and all too relatable, this book will resonate with, educate, and inspire people from all walks of life.

Thompson’s father wasn’t abusive. He didn’t come into his life to wreak havoc or disrupt things. He simply wasn’t there. Sure he’d see him around town sometimes. He even met a handful of his father’s other children, his siblings. And while some may say that it is a blessing in some ways to be spared the potentially harmful experience of having someone around who doesn’t want to be, Thompson argues that the absence of a father leaves a different kind of mark on a person.

The “hole in the soul,” as he often calls it, is the pain of wanting something that is intrinsically meant for you and never getting it. Anyone who has lived without a parent will know this feeling all too well, and Thompson describes it with precision. He focuses not only on the bigger moments but on the accumulation of small things that bring consistent reminders of what he’ll never experience. His honest account of these instances is what makes this book so affecting and raw. He leaves nothing out.

It’s hard to talk about this lack of a father figure without talking about race, which is a subject that Thompson tackles head-on. The parental structure, especially in Black families, shifted for many Black kids in the 60s and 70s. Thompson wasn’t the only one in his friend group lacking a father figure; it seemed that more than most were experiencing the same thing.

In this memoir, he talks frankly about the racism he experienced throughout his life and how being Black shaped his experiences. But he doesn’t only talk about the lows that come with growing up Black in America. It’s the pride with which he writes about being Black that ends up being some of the most exciting parts of the book. You can notice how he grows from being on the victim end of prejudice to using his Blackness as something to empower him and others around him. It’s a breath of fresh air to read about him partaking in things like the Million Man March, visiting the White House while President Barack Obama was in office, and attending an Earth, Wind, and Fire concert. It can be difficult to build yourself back up from situations that are designed to tear you down, but Thompson paves the way with his own story. Celebrating being Black and surrounding himself with Black men doing the same fills the gap for him in some ways. It’s refreshing to read about him enjoying himself and the people around him.

Walking around with a missing piece left him yearning a lot as a child and striving to be more when he grew up. While his parenting journey wasn’t always a cakewalk, there’s one thing that remained: his presence in his son’s life. It’s these true full-circle moments that give the book its heart. There are all these little ways to heal but none quite as powerful as the decision to be present.

As the second half of the book focuses on his journey through fatherhood, we get to hear his ideas on how he could be a better father and see it play out in his child’s adulthood. That, mixed with his many personal accomplishments, is what makes Full Circles such an inspiring memoir to read.

Thompson’s personal approach to storytelling is what makes the book feel so familiar and is also what caused some issues. The structure of the book, especially in the first half, jumps around a lot. One minute we’re at his father’s funeral, the next we’re running into him around town years earlier. There are a lot of tangents on small details that slow the story down, but you can feel that it’s just his genuine love for each person in his life, no matter how small a role they played. While it makes the book a bit harder to stay involved in at times, it feels so familiar in the way that it does when you listen to anyone talk about their small town and the people in it.

Full Circles is a heartwarming memoir about forging your own path and being there for your child while they make their own.