Cheekie: A Child Out Of The Desire - Softcover

A young black man writing in a voice that pulses with the energy and life of the streets, tells the story of his remarkable childhood in one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in America.

The Desire project in New Orleans, once the pride of public housing, was home for Cheekie, as it had been for his parents and grandparents before him. But now it is the 1970s, a time when Desire has degenerated into a world of violence, drugs, and poverty. Still, Desire is full of life as well, and of people whose vibrant energy and love of fun transcend their oppressive surroundings.

Cheekie is a personal and powerful day-by-day account presented as the journals of a boy growing up in the Desire. Told with the wonder and freshness of a growing boy's perspective, Cheekie brings it all to life -- the abuse and the love, the neglect and the nurturing, the violence and the inspiration through which a child came to manhood.

Cheekie is a tale of hope, for it is the story of one young man's escape from the violent world of the Desire, and his journey toward success in the larger world.

Clarence Nero is a native of New Orleans. He grew up in Desire Project, a violent and impoverished community in the Ninth Ward. Nero attended Howard University and wrote his first novel "Cheekie: A Child out of the Desire" at 27 years of age after graduating from Howard. His first novel "Cheekie" was endorsed by the late, Dr. Maya Angelou who said, "Nero is a promising young writer." In 2003, Nero graduated from Louisiana State University MFA Graduate Program. He currently resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana where he teaches English at the Baton Rouge Community College.