Bronx-Raised: 10 Memoirs
Bronx Week is about to kick off with events and festivities to celebrate all the things that make the city's northernmost borough great. Many would argue that it's the people that make the Bronx great. Born at different times and in different neighborhoods, the authors below were indelibly shaped by their childhoods in the Bronx. They found both challenges and opportunities and forged careers as chefs, journalists, musicians, businessmen, and more.
Just Kids From the Bronx: Telling It the Way It Was: An Oral History
by Arlene Alda
This collection of stories and memories from children who grew up in the Bronx includes the experiences of Yankees' broadcaster Michael Kay, J. Crew's Millard (Mickey) Drexler, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, and hip hop's Grandmaster Melle Mel.
Becoming Maria: Love and Chaos in the South Bronx
by Sonia Monzano
A coming-of-age memoir by 'Maria' of Sesame Street that offers a look into the daily lives of a loving, but troubled, Latino family and a girl kept afloat amid the turbulence of her life and times by the dream of becoming an actress.
Notes From a Young Black Chef
by Kwame Onwuachi with Joshua David Stein
The Top Chef star traces his culinary coming-of-age in both the Bronx and Nigeria, discussing his eclectic training in acclaimed restaurants while sharing insights into the racial barriers that have challenged his career.
God-Level Knowledge of Darts: Life Lessons from the Bronx
by Desus Nice & The Kid Mero
Desus & Mero have turned their Bronx-born friendship into a growing brand and popular podcast. Now they've written the most entertaining guide to life you'll ever read. As they put it: “We want to share all we’ve learned, after years in the Bronx streets, with you: the people."
Transformed: A Navy Seal's Unlikely Journey from the Throne of Africa, to the Streets of the Bronx, to Defying All Odds
by Remi Adeleke
Describes the inspiring story of Remi Adeleke from his childhood in Nigeria and losing his father, to being raised by a single mom in the Bronx and ultimately moving from troubled teen to Navy SEAL to actor.
My Beloved World
by Sonia Sotomayor
The first Hispanic American on the U.S. Supreme Court shares the story of her life before becoming a judge, describing her youth in a Bronx housing project, the ambition that fueled her Ivy League education, and the individuals who helped shape her career.
I Am These Truths: A Memoir of Identity, Justice, and Living Between Worlds
by Sunny Hostin
The Emmy Award-winning View co-host and ABC News senior legal correspondent traces her journey from a biracial child in a South Bronx housing project to a successful and influential Washington, D.C. attorney and journalist.
The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash: My Life, My Beats
by Grandmaster Flash
A revered musical icon offers a firsthand look at the early days of the hip hop revolution and documents his own musical journey, detailing his rise to stardom, financial disaster and cocaine addiction, and redemption with the love of family and friends.
Twisted Head: An Italian American Memoir
by Carl Capotorto
In a memoir about growing up in an Italian-American family in the Bronx during the 1960s and 1970s, the actor-playwright offers an account of a working-class family ruled by his father, the obsessive, tyrannical owner of a pizza and sandwich shop.
Disrupting the Game: From the Bronx to the Top of Nintendo
Reggie Fils-Aimé, retired President and Chief Operating Officer of Nintendo of America Inc., shares leadership lessons and inspiring stories from his unlikely rise to the top.
Summaries provided via NYPL’s catalog, which draws from multiple sources. Click through to each book’s title for more.