Boys GROWING UP  

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 Click on the first letter of the author's last name.

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Anaya, Rudolfo BLESS ME, ULTIMA Ultima, a wise woman, comes to live with Rudolfo's Chicano family, and helps him to understand the many separate forces shaping his life.

Baker, Russell (HRC) * GROWING UP (92/BAKER) Newspaper columnist Baker writes with great humor about growing up during the Depression. Though lack of money was clearly a problem, relationships with family and friends were more important.

Borland, Hal WHEN THE LEGENDS DIE The story of a Ute Indian boy, brought up in the old way, in friendship with a bear cub. His boyhood becomes harsh and brutal when he is torn away from his mountains to be "civilized."

Brown, Claude * MANCHILD IN THE PROMISED LAND (92/BROWN)
The autobiography of a young African American man brought up in Harlem. Claude Brown started to rob when he was five, and learned how to steal from cash registers when he became eight.

Cameron, Peter ONE WAY OR ANOTHER A collection of contemporary short stories concerned with the ways young people confront problems such as the divorce of parents, loss of love, unfulfilled or unfulfilling commitments, and betrayal by friends.

Carroll, James * AN AMERICAN REQUIEM (92 Carroll) James Carroll, the son of a general who was a leader and Pentagon official during the Vietnam War, became a priest and anti-war activist. In this 1996 biography, James Carroll talks about growing up, war, religion, and his complex relationship with his father.

Chin, Frank DONALD DUK On the eve of the Chinese New Year in San Francisco's Chinatown, twelve year old Donald Duk attempts to deal with his comical name and his feelings for his cultural heritage. He discovers his history teacher, Mr. Meanwright, is wrong about Chinese-American history.

Dahl, Roald * BOY (92/DAHL) In this short autobiography (available in the middle school lib), the famous author of such children's stories as CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY and THE WITCHES describes scenes from his own childhood. Particularly memorable are the cruel teachers he encountered.

Edwards, Christopher CRAZY FOR GOD (92/Edw) Why would an intelligent college student join a religious cult? How do cults try to maintain power over their members? This is a true story of someone who joined and then left.

Edmonds, Walter D. THE SOUTH AFRICAN QUIRT. Natty Dunston seems always to live in fear of his tyrannical father. Mr. Dunstan, a highly sophisticated international lawyer and gentleman farmer, has decided-at whatever cost- to mold his sensitive son into his own stern and narrow image of manhood. Natty soon learns ways to protect himself.

Gates, Henry Louis COLORED PEOPLE In this 1994 memoir, Gates, now Chair of the Department of Afro-American Studies at Harvard, recounts his childhood in West Virginia in the 1950s and 1960s. His emphasis is on the community and dignity of black people still living under segregation.

Gordon, Sheila WAITING FOR THE RAIN When children, a black boy and a white can be friends even under apartheid in South Africa. As they grow up, tensions build.

Hazari,* THE UNTOUCHABLES (92/HAZARI) The autobiography of an Indian boy born to the untouchable caste, and thereby condemned to the life of a drudge. Hazari tells of this childhood and of how he refused to accept his fate, and decided to try to escape and shape his own life.

Kim, Richard * LOST NAMES (92/KIM) In a series of vignettes, this novelist describes his youth in Korea during the Japanese occupation and WWII.

Kovic, Ron BORN ON THE FOURTH OF JULY The author describes his disillusionment with American society after being seriously injured in Vietnam and returning to find Americans indifferent to veterans.

Malcolm X THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MALCOLM X (92/MALCOLM). Malcolm Little was a straight A student in Lansing, Michigan. He became a pimp, thief and drug-pusher and finally Malcolm X, an African-American Muslim and eloquent spokesman for racial harmony in the U.S.

Mathabane, Mark KAFFIR BOY: THE TRUE STORY OF A BLACK YOUTH'S COMING OF AGE IN APARTHEID SOUTH AFRICA (92/Math) A South African high-school tennis star documents apartheid's assault on the homes and lives of black people.

MacNeil, Robert WORDSTRUCK (92 MacNeil) The famous newscaster and editor describes his Canadian childhood and youth, his early reading and growing fascination with the English language in all its varieties.

McCall, Nathan MAKES ME WANNA HOLLER A recent autobiography describing the author’s adolescence, including a three year prison term, and successful career as a journalist. He currently writes for The Washington Post. Full of thoughtful commentary on relationships between blacks and whites in U.S. society today.

Mehta, Ved * FACE TO FACE (92/MEHTA) Blinded by meningitis at the age of three, Ved never lost his desire for a full and vigorous life. His father, a Western trained doctor in the Indian Civil Service was also determined that Ved should learn braille and then be sent (at the age of 13) to a school for the blind in the U.S.

Murakami, Ryu SIXTY-NINE (J F Murakami) A humorous, self-deprecating view of Japanese high school life in Sasebo, Japan in 1969. The narrator may remind readers of Holden Caulfield.

Murayama, Milton ALL I ASKING FOR IS MY BODY The son of Japanese immigrants in pre-WWII Hawaii, Kiyoshi and his older brother resent their parents expectations that they sacrifice their own interests to pay off the family debt. The concept of filial piety is a source of conflict in this story.

Natsume, Soseki KOKORO (J/F/NAT) The story of a young man who is much influenced by the guilt and loneliness of his sensei.

O'Brien, Tim * IF I DIE IN A COMBAT ZONE (92/ O'BRIEN) The author graduated from Macalaster College in 1968 and was sent to Viet Nam that same year. He describes the ways in which his year there changed him.

Rodriguez, Richard * HUNGER OF MEMORY: THE EDUCATION OF RICHARD RODRIGUEZ    
(92/ Rodriguez) The poignant journey of a "minority student" who pays the cost of his social assimilation and academic success with a painful alienation-from his past, his parents, his culture- and so describes the high price of "making it" in middle-class America.

Salzman, Mark LOST IN PLACE In this account of his high school years, Salzman describes his interest in martial arts and Chinese culture. His tone is self deprecating and humorous, but he realistically pictures many of the concerns of teenagers.

Senoh Kappa A BOY CALLED H (J 92) Senoh’s memoir of the war years in Kobe shows us an inquisitive, lively boy growing up in an era when no one was supposed to ask questions. His story is humorous, sad, and thought-provoking.

Soto, Gary A SUMMER LIFE This collection of autobiographical essays by the Hispanic poet Soto capture details of sound, sight, and everyday scenes he experienced growing up in Fresno, California.

Wiesel, Elie NIGHT Autobiographical novel about a teenage boy traumatized by death camps and consumed by guilt that he survived when many others did not.

Wright, Richard (HRC)* BLACK BOY (92/WRIGHT) The author describes his life as an intelligent and sensitive child growing up in the segregated south. People were often cruel, and it seems amazing that Wright wasn't crushed by some of the shocks he suffered.

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J. Kushida
English teacher, 
ASIJ  2000

    
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