Yummy : The last days of a southside shorty by G. Neri, illustrated by Randy DuBurke

Yummy is thirteen and already drawn into the gang lifestyle of Chicago.  He was raised by a no-nonsense grandmother, but he was always getting kicked out or running off, and he found solace and a sense of something bigger and better with the Black Disciples.  In an attempt to make a name for himself, he busted in on a group of rivals with a gun in his hand, but his inexperience led to an innocent classmate's death.  And it put Yummy on the run.  The Black Disciples protected him until it became too much -- to much attention, pressure, and simple annoyance.

Reviewed by kate the librarian.
 

"Sometimes stories get to you; this one left my stomach in knots.  After three days of reporting, I still couldn't decide which was more appalling: the child's life or the child's death." --John D. Hull, TIME magazine, September 1994.

This story is based on the real Robert "Yummy" Sandifer, born in 1983, raised and killed in the Roseland area of Chicago.

Yummy: the Last Days of a Southside Shorty from Greg Neri on Vimeo.