The greats are being called home one after the other this year.
Publishing nearly 100 books for children and teens, Walter Dean Myers transitioned from this place on Tuesday at the age of 76. He is survived by his wife, Constance and sons, Christopher and Michael Dean.
His books chronicled urban life, African American history and war experiences.
Susan Katz, publisher of Harper Collins Children’s Books, said in a statement, that Myers’ books “do not shy away from the sometimes gritty truth of growing up. He wrote books for the reader he once was, books he wanted to read when he was a teen. He wrote with heart and he spoke to teens in a language they understood. For these reasons, and more, his work will live on for a long, long time.”
His realistic novels for teens include Fallen Angels (1988) about the Vietnam War, Sunrise Over Fallujah (2008) about the Iraq war and Monster (1998) about a 16-year-old boy charged with murder. Myers wasn’t afraid to bring forth vivid portrayals of real-life African American experiences. And it served him well. Myers was the recipient of two Newbery Honors, a three-time National Book Award finalist, and the first recipient of the Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement. He was named the national ambassador for young people’s literature in 2012.
In Myers’ 2001 memoir, Bad Boy, he wrote, “Harlem is the first place called ‘home’ that I can remember.” It’s also where “reading pushed me to discover worlds beyond my landscape, especially during dark times when my uncle was murdered and my family became dysfunctional with alcohol and grief.”
Born Walter Milton Myers on Aug. 12, 1937, Myers was sent to Harlem by his father, Herbert Dean after the death of his mother, Florence Dean. Later, Myers adopted the middle name “Dean” to honor his parents.
