8 Gutsy Coming-Of-Age Stories To Revisit Right Now

Move over Holden Caulfield, from the projects of Brooklyn to Milton, Massachusetts, these stories inspired the city-kid in all of us. Curated by Marcus Burke, author of Team Seven, here are 8 of our favorites.

1. Spike Lee's Crooklyn

Via madamenoire.com

This semi-autobiographical film was co-written and directed by Lee. Head back to Bed-Stuy, '73 and let the summer take you over.

2. The Coldest Winter Ever By Sista Soulja

Via emerybookclub.wordpress.com

Also set in Brooklyn, this novel follows a notorious drug dealer's daughter in one of the worst snow storms in New York's history.

3. A Bronx Tale

Via alwayskeepitreal.com

Head uptown for Robert De Niro's directorial debut.

4. The Dragon Can't Dance by Earl Lovelace

Via amazon.com

From Trinidadian author Earl Lovelace, this novel follows Aldrick Prospect as he prepares for Carnival. Lovelace takes on not just the toils of growing up but how humans cope racial tensions and colonialism.

5. Conversations in Sicily by Elio Vittorini

Via ndbooks.com

First published in 1941 as Nome e Lagrime, this book follows Silvestro Ferrauto as he battles his families demons. If Hemingway endorses it, it's good enough for you.

6. Boaz Yakin's Fresh

Via alwayskeepitreal.com

This 1994 film follows 12-year-old Michael as comes into the world of selling drugs (oh, yeah and Samuel L. Jackson anyone?)

7. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz

Via thepaperwolf.com

This powerhouse novel follows Oscar Wao, a character that Diaz calls a 'ghetto nerd.' It also won the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.

8. Team Seven

Via doubleday.com

A debut novel from Iowa grad Marcus Burke, Team Seven follows Andre Battel as he navigates life in a neighborhood south of Boston. From hitting the basketball court to pushing weed to dealing with a father who appears as quickly as he vanishes, this book shows the just how tough growing up can be.

“This is one of those rare first books you'll read again and again. The prose surges forward: relentless, plainspoken and artful, the people it describes laid bare, the tender heart at the center pulsing through each chapter. Unforgettable.”

—Ayana Mathis, author of The Twelve Tribes of Hattie