What They Found: Love on 145th Street

Written by Walter Dean Myers

Narrated by Joniece Abbott-Pratt, Amanda Alcántara, Tyla Collier and 10 more

By the groundbreaking author of the award-winning Monster–a visionary who influenced and inspired a generation–this story take us back to the world of 145th Street: Short Stories to show how love can be found, and thrive, in the most unlikely places.

Curtis finds love in Iraq as he struggles to stay alive in a war he doesn't want to fight, and Letha discovers her own beauty in the love of her child. There is the "good daughter" who realizes that there's only one way to help her brother and her family. Other stories center on the daily drama of the Curl-E-Que beauty shop, or capture the slapstick side of passion.

AWARDS FOR WALTER DEAN MYERS:
New York Times Bestselling Author
3-Time National Book Award Finalist
Michael L. Printz Award
5 Coretta Scott King Awards
2 Newbery Honors
National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature (2012-2013)
Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Achievement
Children’s Literature Legacy Award

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
• Release date: May 9, 2023
• ISBN: 9780593786246

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 National Ambassador for Young People's Literature; and an inaugural NYC Literary Honoree. Myers was recognized by every single major award in the field of children's literature. He was the author of two Newbery Honor Books and five Coretta Scott King Book Award winners. He was the recipient of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults and 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.

Reviews for What They Found

[junipersun · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

These stories were very interesting, despite being in a setting so different from my own familiar surroundings. The narrator read it with and accent that I imagine a person from Harlem would have.

[gwen6ashworth · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

These stories show how residents in this neighborhood in New York City’s Harlem value courage, compassion, love, kindness and hard work. And how they come together to help one another in their struggles of life.
This book of fifteen short stories by Walter Dean Myers is set in New York City’s Harlem in and around 145th Street. Most of his characters are dynamic, honest and believable. Myers writing style is simple and direct. Many of the stories are set in the Curl-E-Que beauty shop which is similar to the shops in the movies Steel Magnolia’s or Barbershop. Many of the characters who are minor characters in some of the earlier stories are the main characters in later stories. Curtis, who is introduced in the first story, is the main character in the final story “Combat Zone.” All of the stories are about the human experience and about the characters’ ability to adapt to whatever life throws their way. The awards won by this book include: The Boston Globe-Horn Honor Book, Horn Book, Fanfare & ALA Best Book for YA. I would recommend this book for young adults 14 years and older due to the mild sexual content.

[wilcoxpat_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

On 145th Street, the Curl-E-Que Beauty Shop serves as a central point for both the community and the stories that they have to tell. Each vingette tells a facet of life on 145th Street. Each is capable of standing on it's own from Cheryl, who tries to seduce her best friend's boyfriend to help her determine if he is a good catch to Calvin as he reconsiders his attempts to buy a gun after visiting a prison; Abeni learns that she achieved her 15 minutes of fame by breaking up with her boyfriend on camera. This book provides a series of tales of promising athletes, desperate mothers, and misguided adolescents. The dialogue is authentic and engaging for all readers to include the reluctant reader who is trying to find their life in a story. The sometimes-amusing chapter titles are in contrast to the occasionally stark content. The final story takes Corporal Curtis Mason from the neighborhood to Afghanistan. Characters are rich in detail and the setting well developed. These are urban tales that not only depict the heartbreak but also the hope. Highly recommended.

[kpickett_11 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A collection of short stories from one of the great authors. These stories are all about love, husband-wife, parent-child, siblings, neighbors and friends. The stories work great separately for readings and also paint one large mosaic picture of Harlem and this community. Readers who liked Street Love will like seeing characters they are already familiar with.

[sarahlouise_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I think I would have liked the short stories to be longer--as soon as I got to know a character, it was on to the next. But WDM is a great writer.

[nm8fall078v8romero · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book was good and interesting to read I enjoyd it because of its drama and the unnone twists of life and the events that take place in the book relate in real life. this book shows the the up and downs of live serching for love the 2 lovers have a hard time.with all of what is going around them.
the book expressed what people would say in real events.its like a play and if read it youll really get into it..

[cinf0master · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

On 145th Street, the Curl-E-Que Beauty Shop serves as a loose nexus for both the community members and their stories. Cheryl tries to seduce her best friend’s boyfriend to ensure he is loyal to her; Calvin reconsiders his attempts to buy a gun after a visiting a prison; Abeni learns that she achieved short film fame by breaking up with her boyfriend on camera. In a series of vignettes, Myers spins tales of promising athletes, desperate mothers, and misguided adolescents. Readers will find the authentic dialogue appealing, and the sometime humorous chapter titles offset the occasionally bleak content. The events in the final chapter, which take place in Iraq, break down the carefully constructed New York setting; readers are left feeling removed from what was previously a very real neighborhood. Though sporadic references to Myer’s earlier work, 145th Street: short stories (Delacorte, 2000) appear in this new work, these tales are able to stand-alone. Rich in both character and setting, these urban tales combine heartbreak and hope into a vivid tableau of a community.