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shirleytupperfreeman's review against another edition
Walter Dean Myers is coming to town this week. He is a popular, and critically acclaimed, writer for young people but I had never read any of his work. I decided to start with his memoir - written primarily for teens I suspect. Myers was raised by an adoptive family in Harlem during the 1940s and 50s. He writes honestly, though not harshly, of his struggles to merge disparate identities - he was smart and loved literature and poetry in a neighborhood where being athletic and tough was a key to survival. He also liked being strong and tough and felt himself pulled in many directions. He was a seriously low achiever in a high achieving gifted high school. He loved to write - in a family where Mom couldn't begin to understand and Dad hid well his inability to read. This would be a good read for a young person in less-than-ideal circumstances.
amyappy's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this. Could definitely use bits of this book with both my regular kids and the AP students as well. Feeling inspired...
psal707's review against another edition
3.0
Bad Boy is about Walter’s life as a kid. He grew up in Harlem, New York City, at a time when blacks were being segregated. As a young boy, Walter didn’t understand why people felt that the races were different, or that blacks were less than whites. Walter also had a speech impediment and other kids teased him about it.
Elementary school was hard for Walter. Although Walter’s classmates made fun of his speech problem, the teachers didn’t help him either. One of Walter’s teachers, Mrs. Conway, would sometimes tease Walter, telling him to speak up, or that she couldn’t understand him—but never actually helped him. Towards the end of the school year, Mrs. Conway told Walter to bring his mom into school with him, so she could talk with her. Walter didn’t bring his mom in the next day, so Mrs. Conway made Walter sit in the back of the room and not participate in class. She saw him reading comic books, took them away from him, and gave him a book to read, and he discovered that he loved the book.
Mr. Lasher, Walter’s fourth grade teacher, was his favorite. Not only did Mr. Lasher acknowledge Walter’s speech problems, but he made him go to a tutor once a week for the whole day. Mr. Lasher also let Walter hold the flag at graduation, and he got the award for Outstanding Boy. Walter’s mom was very proud of Walter, but Walter was still fighting his way out of his problems.
By high school, Walter wasn’t fighting anymore, but instead he was skipping school. He was also having trouble applying for college. One because he wasn’t going to school, and two because most schools didn’t accept blacks. These problems caused him to stop going to school all together. Walter also discovered that his father was illiterate, and this made Walter angry because his father had pretended he could read.
After high school, Walter goes behind his parents’ back and enlists in the army. The army recruiters were surprised by how high his test scores were, the highest anyone has gotten. Once he had been accepted, he told his parents. His father was proud of him, but his mother hated the idea. Fortunately, he survived the years he served, and he worked hard to become a successful writer.
anniepaxx's review against another edition
5.0
This book stared off a little slow for me (as do most memories) with the author talking about his family/extended family's lineage but the further you get into it the more you realize it's because this book is all about Walter's identity and self view. It was a great read for a 20-something white girl from Jersey because it gave me some perspective on things I would never/could never experience. Overall a great read if you're interested in personal identity/Harlem/memoirs in general.
lorayne's review against another edition
2.0
Myers uses a dry, sarcastic tone to describe his childhood. The book drags quite a bit. I abandoned it once and forced myself to read it through because I was reading it with my students. The style of the writing reminds me of what something written in the 50s sounded like.
rebecca2023's review against another edition
4.0
Read for a course. Read immediately after Jerry Spinelli's memoir. Spinelli described himself as a "good boy" with a great deal of appreciation for the troublemakers who made life interesting. Myers was a bit of a troublemaker! While Spinelli was valedictorian and had perfect attendance as a youngster, Myers was truant and barely passed his classes, although he was identified as gifted. It was really interesting to read the memoirs of these two fantastic young adult authors back to back. It has increased my appreciation for both, and brings up many, many questions about what it means to be white and privileged vs. poor and black in America.
anslow's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
4.0