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By David Ambroz

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“A Place Called Home will take your breath away.”—Jeanette Walls, author of The Glass Castle

“It’s impossible to read A Place Called Home and not want to redouble your efforts to fight the systems of poverty that have plagued America for far too long.”—Hillary Rodham Clinton

A Place Called Home chronicles David Ambroz’s harrowing eleven-year journey through homelessness and poverty in New York City, followed by a turbulent experience in foster care. This powerful memoir exposes the harsh realities faced by countless children living in poverty and highlights Ambroz’s extraordinary resilience and transformation.

As young children, David and his siblings should have been focused on school, but instead, they wandered the streets searching for shelter while their mother struggled with mental illness. Their quest for safety leads them to train stations, 24-hour diners, and any place that offers warmth. Their days are spent scavenging for food and bathing in public restrooms.

When David is placed into foster care, he initially sees it as a beacon of hope, only to find that it brings its own set of dangers. Shuffled between abusive homes and enduring the cruelty of those who reject him for his emerging sexuality, David’s experience paints a stark picture of systemic failure.

Amid the turmoil, David finds refuge and hope in libraries, schools, and the kindness of a few compassionate adults. His unyielding determination and resilience earn him a scholarship to Vassar College, marking the beginning of his escape from poverty. He later graduates from UCLA Law with a mission to reform laws impacting children in poverty.

A Place Called Home is a poignant and lyrical narrative that captures one boy’s journey from despair to hope. It is both a gripping personal story and a compelling call to action, urging readers to move beyond sympathy and advocate for meaningful change.

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“A Place Called Home will take your breath away. It’s a must read for anyone who’s looked at a raggedy street family and asked, ‘Who are those people?’ It’s also for everyone who cares about “Those People.” You will fall in love with David Ambroz, his beautifully-told, gut-wrenching story, and his great big heart.”
Jeannette Walls, New York Times bestselling author of The Glass Castle
"It's impossible to read A Place Called Home and not want to redouble your efforts to fight the systems of poverty that have plagued America for far too long. In this book, David shares his deeply personal story and issues a rousing call to make this a more humane and compassionate nation."
Hillary Rodham Clinton
“Gorgeous . . . A Place Called Home is a window into childhood poverty, abuse, homelessness, foster care, mental illness."
Chicago Tribune
Ambroz is a superb storyteller. Unless you lack a heartbeat, you can’t read A Place Called Home without wanting to do something to change our foster care system.
Washington Blade
Books to curl up with this December
Good Morning America
“It’s a story of struggle against enormous odds and infinite random cruelties. But it is not a story without hope. . . . Ambroz has written a book about a child’s life in poverty, homelessness, and the screwed-up foster care system that isn’t depressing or overly didactic. He offers the reader plenty about how the system works — and how it doesn’t — in recounting the life and adventures of one remarkable boy.”
Washington Independent Review of Books
"This gut-wrenching and rousing memoir of a childhood lived on N.Y.C. streets sheds unforgiving light on America’s own human-rights crisis—and dares us to do better."
PEOPLE
"A Place Called Home presents an unflinching, frank examination of the realities of being a child without a home and being surrounded by a fundamentally flawed system where neither child nor parent have enough help, or the right help, to break the cycle of poverty. Ambroz’s story is a frightening example of how easily inadequate procedures and policies traumatize lives each and every day. The heart of this first memoir is both a raw account of Ambroz’s journey to adulthood and a powerful, uncompromising call to action for significant change."
Booklist
"Riveting. . . A haunting, inspiring chronicle of fortitude and perseverance."
Kirkus, Starred Review
“[A] captivating debut…Galvanizing and compassionate, this personal account of survival should be required reading.”
Publishers Weekly
"His memoir is one of the best I’ve ever read, and I’m so thankful that he was brave enough to share his story with us.”
The Daring Interview series, Brenebrown.com
"One of my all-time favorites, A Place Called Home is not only a riveting, fast-paced memoir, but also a heartbreaking and heart-healing story about how America lets down its young — and how one young man overcame all the odds to thrive. Inspiring, hopeful, horrifying, and hugely important, it speaks to the effects of mental illness on a family, the deficiencies of the foster care system, and the role of humor in getting through anything. Utterly fantastic and absolutely essential reading." -–Zibby Owens, bestselling author of Blank and host of the podcast Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books
Zibby Owens
“An extraordinary memoir. I couldn’t put it down. It’s really changed the way I think and see people on the street who are homeless.” –Elizabeth Vargas, New York Times bestselling author of Between Breaths and host of Heart of the Matter with Elizabeth Vargas
Elizabeth Vargas
“A Place Called Home asks us to reflect-on the family we come from and the family we find, the extraordinary courage of a child and the responsibility we all have to make the world safer for those who enter our world unprotected. In a society far too often consumed by division and dissonance, Ambroz writes to us at just the right time, lighting the way for a better world by asking us to give every child a chance.”
Steve Pemberton, author of A Chance in the World
“I love a true story where the downtrodden triumph over hardship—and A Place Called Home delivers. David Ambroz, through grit, courage, and integrity, overcomes obstacles beyond my imagination. I found myself cheering for him and the siblings he steadfastly protects, wondering how they were going to survive. David does more than that—he thrives—and then he pays it forward. A Place Called Home is an awe-inspiring story that will lift your spirits and soften even the hardest heart. It’s a beautifully told, captivating memoir.”
David Crow, author of The Pale-Faced Lie
“From his roller-coaster childhood being homeless on the streets of New York City to his boot-strapped entry to the privileged halls of the Ivy League, I was thoroughly entertained and even provoked by David Ambroz’s story. More so than any book I have read in recent times, this must-read made me want to be better man.”
Dr. Alan Downs, author of The Velvet Rage
"A story destined to end in tragedy that magically rewards an indomitable determination to succeed. Beautifully written."

Ted Koppel, veteran ABC anchor and New York Times bestselling author of Lights Out
“I was deeply moved by his memoir, A Place Called Home, a soulful and ultimately uplifting tale of turning experience into power. This book tells the truths we need to hear and is a must-read for lovers of memoir and advocates alike; for those wondering what it is like to rise from poverty, and what an individual can do to fix the intractable problems we face.”
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti
"A heartbreaking, gritty, and inspiring personal testament to the burden that is placed on a child in poverty. David’s elegantly written memoir is an ode to the millions of families who are struggling to survive and provides the immense hope that is needed to.”

Keith Ferrazzi, New York Times bestselling author of Competing in the New World of Work
“In A Place Called Home, Ambroz shares his personal journey out of a childhood marked by poverty, homelessness, and years in foster care – a story of courage, tenacity, and the power of education to transform lives.”

Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy
“David Ambroz faced seemingly insurmountable challenges his entire life and emerged with the grace and wisdom to tell the story. His dreams of a better life via education carried him through childhood abuse, homelessness, foster care, and finally to adulthood, where he leveraged his against-all-odds success to advocate for children living in poverty and foster care. This book is an inspiration to anyone who has encountered hardships, encouraging us to tackle them head-on with courage and determination.”

Madeline Di Nonno, President & CEO of the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media

On Sale: May 6, 2025
Page Count: 384 pages
Publisher: Legacy Lit
ISBN-13: 9780306923036

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David Ambroz

About the Author

David Ambroz is a national poverty and child welfare expert and advocate. He was recognized by President Obama as an American Champion of Change. He currently serves as the Head of Community Engagement (West) for Amazon. Previously he led Corporate Social Responsibility for Walt Disney Television, and served as the President of the Los Angeles City Planning Commission, and as a California Child Welfare Councilmember. After growing up homeless and then in foster care, he graduated from Vassar and later from UCLA School of Law (J.D.). He is a foster dad and lives in Los Angeles, CA.

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David Ambroz

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