Brandon Gill has narrated 5 audiobooks on Listento.it by 2 authors. The most-rated is 145th Street: Short Stories.
Juba!
Summary
New York City's Five Points district in 1846 is a volatile mixture of poor blacks and immigrants from Europe. William Henry Lane is a teenager working odd jobs to make ends meet, but he really loves to dance. Watching the other dancers in Five Points and practicing when he can, he gets so good that he begins to call himself "Master Juba". Master Juba is just another entertainer, dancing in return for supper money, until he is brought to the attention of Charles Dickens, the great English novelist. Dickens writes about Juba and his dancing in his book American Notes, and it is as "Boz's Juba" (Boz was Dickens' nom de plume) that Juba performs in England with the Pell Serenaders. Juba quickly finds that in London, he's turning heads and taking the city by storm with his dancing skills and sense of rhythm. But what will Juba do when the Serenaders have to return to the United States? Slavery has been abolished in England; in the US it still exists in all its ugliness. Free black men and women are often captured in the North and sent down South as slaves. England offers freedoms that Juba could only dream of in the States, and returning home may prove a dangerous decision. This novel is based on a true story, the intricacies of Juba's meteoric rise as an explosive young black dancer brought to life by Walter Dean Myers through meticulous and intensive research.
©2015 Walter Dean Myers and the Estate of Walter Dean Myers (P)2015 HarperCollins Publishers
All the Right Stuff
Summary
Paul DuPree is working at a soup kitchen in Harlem the summer his father dies, just trying to get by. But Elijah, the soup man, won't stop talking about the social contract and asking Paul questions about heavy-duty things. Paul has never thought about this stuff. He'd rather hang out with Keisha, an unwed teen mom whose basketball skills rival his own. Then Sly, a notorious Harlem big shot, shows up. Paul is both intrigued and intimidated by Sly and his conspiracy theories, and for once he starts contemplating how you really get ahead in life. As the talk of what-ifs turns into reality, Paul realizes his summer is about more than getting by - it's about taking charge of your life.
©2012 Walter Dean Myers (P)2012 Recorded Books, LLC
A Storm Called Katrina
Summary
School Library Journal calls this moving tale by Myron Uhlberg a "remarkable homage to New Orleans". A Storm Called Katrina follows Louis Daniel, a 10-year-old boy from New Orleans’ Ninth Ward who loves to play the horn just like his idol, Louis Armstrong. The morning after the devastating hurricane rips through his neighborhood, Louis - with his beloved cornet in tow - must brave the rising flood waters and seek shelter with his family at the Superdome.
©2011 Myron Uhlberg (P)2012 Recorded Books
Harlem Summer
Summary
Myers is at his clever best in this witty and action-packed, coming-of-age story of a teenager's summer during the Harlem Renaissance and his run-ins with famous gangsters, writers, and musicians. It's 1925 and Mark Purvis is a 16-year-old with a summer to kill. He'd rather jam with his jazz band (they need the practice), but is urged by his parents to get a job. As an assistant at The Crisis, a magazine for the "new Negro", Mark rubs shoulders with Langston Hughes and Countee Cullen. He's invited to a party at Alfred Knopf's place. He's making money, but not enough, and when piano player Fats Waller entices him and his buddies to make some fast cash, Mark finds himself crossing the gangster Dutch Schultz.
©2007 Walter Dean Myers (P)2013 Recorded Books
145th Street: Short Stories
Summary
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
©2001 Walter Dean Myers (P)2020 Listening Library