145th Street: Short Stories

Walter Dean Myers

Jan 2020 · Penguin Random House Audio · Narrated by Brandon Gill, Almarie Guerra, Johnny Heller, Dominic Hoffman, Sullivan Jones, JaQwan J. Kelly, Adenrele Ojo, Paula Parker, Heather Alicia Simms, and Bahni Turpin

About this audiobook

From the award-winning author of Monster, this collection of powerful and poignant stories about 145th Street—an unforgettable block in the heart of Harlem—celebrates African-American life in all of its glory.

“Myers is a master.” —The New York Times Book Review

On Harlem’s 145th Street, things happen that don’t happen anywhere else in the world.

Get to know Big Joe, who’s throwing his own funeral while he’s here to enjoy it, and everyone’s invited. Meet Kitty and Mack, teens with a love story more real than anything they’ve ever known. Follow Monkeyman, the quietest kid on the block and the last person you’d expect the Tigros gang to target. And don’t miss the block party of the year—the whole neighborhood will be there.

From danger and despair to hilarity and joy, literary legend Walter Dean Myers captures every mood and every beat of life in this vibrant Harlem. 


Stories and and touching tributes from authors, artists, and literary legends reflecting on Myer’s legacy are narrated by:

Brandon Gill 
Almarie Guerra
Johnny Heller
Dominic Hoffman
Sullivan Jones
JaQwan J. Kelly
Adenrele Ojo
Paula Parker
Heather Alicia Simms
Bahni Turpin

About the author

Walter Dean Myers, a prolific author of more than one hundred titles, wrote two Newbery Honor Books, eleven Coretta Scott King Award winners, three National Book Award finalists, and the winner of the first Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature. He also received the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults and was the first recipient of the Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement. He was a 2010 United States nominee for the Hans Christian Andersen Award and was nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Award numerous times. From 2012 to 2013, he served as the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature with the platform "Reading is not optional."