Myers lived in Jersey City, New Jersey, with his family. It wasn't until Myers read the book Sonny's Blues by James Baldwin, which takes place in Harlem and focuses on African American characters, that he was inspired to start writing stories based on his own experiences growing up. This struggle led him to remember the advice given by his high school teacher and he began writing columns for men's magazines. Īfter leaving the army, Myers struggled with finding work and figuring out his purpose. They were my only real friends growing up.' Myers attended Public School 125 on Lasalle Street and Stuyvesant High School, before dropping out to join the U.S. When asked what he valued most, he replied, 'My books. Myers would write at night, soon writing about his difficult teenage years. He did not exactly understand what that meant but years later, while working on a construction job in Chicago, he remembered her words. She also suspected that he would drop out and advised him to keep writing no matter what happened. Myers wrote well in high school, which his teacher Bonnie Liebow recognized. During this time he cultivated the habit of writing poetry and short stories and acquired an early love of reading. Seeing him struggle, a teacher urged him to use writing as a way to better express himself. As a child Myers was often teased for his speech impediment and lashed out at those who teased him. He was smart but did not do that well in school, and was considered a disruptive student. The neighborhood protected him and the church guided him. Myers' life as a child centered on the neighborhood and the church. Myers later took 'Dean' as his middle name in honor of his foster parents Florence and Herbert.

Herbert Dean was an African-American man and his wife was a German and Native American woman who taught English at the local high school. Florence and Herbert Dean raised him in Harlem, New York City. At the age of three, Myers was given over to Florence Dean, the first wife of his biological father George Myers, and her husband Herbert. Walter Milton Myers was born in Martinsburg, West Virginia, on August 12, 1937. He also sat on the Board of Advisors of the Society of Children's Book Writer's and Illustrators ( SCBWI). National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, serving in 20. because of its adult language and its realistic depiction of the Vietnam War.

His 1988 novel Fallen Angels is one of the books most frequently challenged in the U.S. He won the Coretta Scott King Award for African-American authors five times. He wrote more than one hundred books including picture books and nonfiction. A tough childhood led him to writing and his school teachers would encourage him in this habit as a way to express himself. He was born in Martinsburg, West Virginia, but was raised in Harlem. Walter Dean Myers (born Walter Milton Myers Aug– July 1, 2014) was an American writer of children's books best known for young adult literature.

Now Is Your Time! by Walter Dean Myers