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    Bad Boy: A Memoir
    Bad Boy: A Memoir
    Bad Boy: A Memoir
    Audiobook4 hours

    Bad Boy: A Memoir

    Written by Walter Dean Myers

    Narrated by Joe Morton

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    A classic memoir that's gripping, funny, and ultimately unforgettable from the bestselling former National Ambassador of Books for Young People. A strong choice for summer reading—an engaging and powerful autobiographical exploration of growing up a so-called ""bad boy"" in Harlem in the 1940s.

    As a boy, Myers was quick-tempered and physically strong, always ready for a fight. He also read voraciously—he would check out books from the library and carry them home, hidden in brown paper bags in order to avoid other boys' teasing. He aspired to be a writer (and he eventually succeeded).

    But as his hope for a successful future diminished, the values he had been taught at home, in school, and in his community seemed worthless, and he turned to the streets and to his books for comfort.

    Don’t miss this memoir by New York Times bestselling author Walter Dean Myers, one of the most important voices of our time. 

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateFeb 22, 2005
    ISBN9780060839161
    Bad Boy: A Memoir
    Author

    Walter Dean Myers

    Walter Dean Myers was the New York Times bestselling author of Monster, the winner of the first Michael L. Printz Award; a former National Ambassador for Young People's Literature; and an inaugural NYC Literary Honoree. Myers received every single major award in the field of children's literature. He was the author of two Newbery Honor Books and six Coretta Scott King Awardees. He was the recipient of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults, a three-time National Book Award Finalist, as well as the first-ever recipient of the Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement.

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    Reviews for Bad Boy

    3.5/5

    91 ratings9 reviews

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    • 5/5
      It’s a coming of age book that is worth the read.
    • 5/5
      I am so glad to have read this book with my 6th-grade students! What honesty he exhibits about his life and struggles! I love that there is a happy ending, and it was actually quite easy for my students to arrive at a message he was communicating to them. There were parts I would not read aloud with them from Myers' teen years, but it was all part of his complete honesty about his life. Many students were so engaged in this book for its honesty and its right in your face approach to the racism Myers encountered when he grew up. Every parent should read this book and then let their middle or high school aged kids read it.
    • 3/5
      This memoir is an account of Walter Dean Myers' childhood in Harlem. While this memoir may be difficult to incorporate into a middle school classroom, Myers' tales show how his inner struggles and questions helped to shape himself as a writer. The questions and confusion that he experienced as a teen, highly influenced by his own race and how he fit into the world, is one that can be translated into many teenagers lives. I think this book would be beneficial for any student who may be struggling to find his or her place in any environment. I enjoyed reading about his childhood and look forward to exploring his fiction books as well.
    • 5/5
      4Q - some sentiments and descriptions are well beyond most of the YA range, although very beautifully rendered, and with a naked honesty that is deeply touching.3P - sadly, this is not likely to appeal to mainstream YA very strongly, although it really does deserve to.
    • 4/5
      This Autobiography shows how Walter struggled on his way to be a men, he had to choose from right and wrong to succeed. Walter also wanted to do the best to be a good man and succeed. Walter was also a great writer, Everyone always likes to hear about a kid growing up black in Harlem, and the struggles of a family trying to do their very best to take out a good living life. Once he was disgusted of how he was living life and so then he remembered a fellow teacher back in elementary school that once told him, “Whatever you do don’t stop writing”. Walter Didn’t stop he wrote a book and then became an award winning author. I recommend this book because it shows how people lived life back then and also how little money they had to survive the hard times, I also recommend it because it shows how hard working was Walter to succeed
    • 3/5
      personal response: After reading about his life, particularly his early childhood, I am amazed Walter Dean Myers is still alive. He sounds like he took a lot of stupid risks as a kid. Overall, it was nice to see where he came from and how he became the person that wrote wonderful stories like Monster. When he describes his friend throwing away a stack of comic books every month I cringed. How could someone do that? I wonder what treasures were discarded.curricular connections:a must to include in an author study. reflection of mid-20th century domestic history
    • 4/5
      For older students who get in trouble a lot, this autobiography by Walter Dean Myers has good lessons about rising above what you have been dealt and moving on. Boys who have been in trouble like this book.
    • 4/5
      An interesting memoir recounting the difficulties of growing up smart and black, both adding to his sense of alienation. Writing simple and straightforward which nonetheless left me anxiously anticipating what would happen next. Includes good depictions of Harlem in the 1940's and 50's.
    • 3/5
      Walter Dean Myers recounts what life was like growing up in Harlem, NY during the 1940's and 1950's. Appropriate for middle school and beyond.