Yummy was a kid, as sweet as the cookies and candy bars he loved to eat -- that earned him his nickname -- and as lovable as the teddy bear he carried around and slept with. Robert "Yummy" Sandifer was a real kid who in 1994, at age 11, shot into a crowd and accidentally killed a 14 year old girl. Overnight he became the object of a citywide manhunt and a nationwide media frenzy. Yummy was featured on the cover of Time magazine and brought a face to the topic of urban gangland violence and murder. Yummy was a bully, a thug, a car thief, an arsonist, a gangbanger and a killer. In this graphic novel, author Greg Neri tells us Yummy's story -- his life and ultimate death -- through the eyes of one of Yummy's classmates. Roger, the fictional narrator, is searching for answers to questions that stumped the nation: Should Yummy be held responsible for his actions -- ordered by his gang leaders? Can his violent, anti-social behavior be excused in light of his abused and neglected childhood? Which is the real Yummy, the candy eating kid who just wanted somewhere to belong or the gun-toting bully who terrorized the neighborhood?
Illustrator, Randy DuBurke shows us Yummy's story in chilling black and white. The emotional response to the neighborhood tragedies are convincingly detailed -- from grief, to shock to anger. And the two sides of Yummy are movingly presented. We see Yummy in the relative safety of his grandmother's house, relaxed, smiling as he holds his teddy bear and watches TV. In sharp contrast we see Yummy, with almost maniacal glee, torching the car of a neighborhood man who angered him.
This book is compelling and still relevant to the lives of too many of our children, close to twenty years after Yummy's tragic life ended. I recommend this book to everyone who teaches, counsels, parents or is a young person growing up in urban America. Though written for ages 12 - 18, my 5th grade elementary students were also riveted by the story. My reluctant readers formed a wait list to be next to take this book home. A lively debate was sparked by asking, "Is Yummy a victim or a monster?" There are no easy answers or happy endings in this book. Readers are presented with the facts in black and white and must decide for themselves. And the true value of the book is that at least one child may make different choices in their life after reading Yummy's story.
*The official Yummy Book Trailer is set to a rap song that gives a whole new dimension to the story.
*Preview the book; find discussion questions; and more at the publisher's website, Lee and Low.com
Time Magazine requires you to have a subscription to read the full true articles written about Yummy, but you can read a few of them on author G. Neri's website. Click on the magazine cover to go to a list of Time articles. "There are no children here" and "Murder in Miniature" are particularly chilling.
Yummy's Awards and Lists:
2011 Coretta Scott King Author Honor 2011 ALA Notable Book 2010 Cybil Award - Best YA Graphic Novel 2011 Once Upon a World Children's Book AwardPublishers Weekly Best Books of 2010 Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2010 Booklist Editor's Choice Best Books of 2010 2011 YALSA Top 10 Quick Picks 2011 ALA Great Graphic Novels for Teens Booklist's Top 10 Graphic Novels for Youth School Library Journal Best Comics for 2010 CCBC Choices 2011 2011 IRA Notable Book for a Global Society 2011 Glyph Award finalist - Story of the Year 2011 Eisner Award finalist - Best Teen Book SLJ's Fuse #8: 100 Magnificent Children’s Books of 2010 List PW Comic Weekly Fifth Annual Critics Poll List Chicago Public Library - Best of the Best Book 2011 Virginia and Louisiana Readers' Choice List for high school, 2012 Maverick Graphic Novel List from the Texas Library Association 2010 Best Books for Youths (Philadelphia Inquirer, Times Union) Top 5 Graphic Novels of 2010 (Guys Lit Wire, Nexus Graphica) Cynsational Books of 2010
Graphics retrieved from www.gregneri.com; www.leeandlow.com; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Sandifer
Your description really makes me want to investigate this book. I can see that reading Yummy would generate a lot of classroom discussion that could be very worthwhile. So many things in our lives are not clear cut and students can truly struggle to make sense of them. Yummy sounds like a story that might bring some understanding to a complex problem.
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