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I am a reluctant writer who writes for reluctant readers. My first teen book for Lee and Low, CHESS RUMBLE came out in 2007. My YA novel SURF MULES came out in June of '09. Find out more about me at www.gneri.com
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BOOKS:
SURF MULES is a YA novel from Putnam.
When Logan Tom goes searching for the Perfect Monster Wave, he doesn’t expect his former best friend, Fin Hamilton, to be killed by it. With everything else going wrong in his life—including a deadbeat dad who bankrupted his family, a mom on the verge of a nervous breakdown, and the possibility of college going down the drain—Logan is suddenly in a tailspin. So when small-time drug dealer Broza offers Logan and his dropout pal, Z-boy, a summer job that could make them rich, it seems like all his problems are solved. But between Z-boy’s constant screw-ups, a band of Nazi surfers out for blood, and a mysterious stranger on their tail, Logan is starting to have serious doubts about hauling contraband across country. What started off as a summer job adventure in disorganized crime, quickly turns into a dangerous quest, where the boys find their friendship and loyalty pushed to the limits. Now all these young surf mules have to do is survive.
"Neri sandwiches his story between a crackling opening and a whipsaw climactic scene... older boys who say they’ve never read anything will be attracted to the novel’s... [view of a] friendship on the brink of disaster." - Kirkus Review
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CHESS RUMBLE is a free verse illustrated novella from Lee and Low Books. The illustrator is the fabulous JESSE JOSHUA WATSON!
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CHESS RUMBLE is an ALA Notable Book for 2007!
"Neri expertly captures Marcus’s voice and delicately teases out his alternating vulnerability and rage. The cadence and emotion of the verse are masterfully echoed through Watson’s expressive acrylic illustrations. This book will become a standby pick for reluctant readers, who will be pulled in before they know it by the story’s quick pace and the authenticity of Marcus’s voice and experience.”—SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL
BUY THE BOOK!
Three moves is all it takes
to change the outcome
of the game.
In Marcus's world, battles are fought everyday--on the street, at home, and in school. Angered by his sister's death and his father's departure, and pushed to the brink by a bullying classmate, Marcus fights back with his fists.
One punch away from being kicked out of school and his home, Marcus encounters a mysterious chess master named CM who challenges him to fight his battles on the chess board. Marcus resists, until he hits rock bottom, and begins a journey, with CM's help, to regain control of his life.
Inspired by recent chess enrichment programs in inner-city schools, Chess Rumble explores the ability of a strategic game to empower young people with the tools they need to anticipate their moves through life's many challenges.
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YUMMY is a graphic novel based on the the infamous short life of 11-year-old "Yummy" Sandifer. In August of 1994, Yummy—nicknamed for his love of sweets—fired a gun at a group of rival gangmembers, accidentally killing a neighborhood girl, Shavon Dean. Police searched Chicago’s southside for three days before finding Yummy face-down in the dirt in a railway tunnel, executed by members of the drug gang he’d sought to impress.
The story made such an impact that Yummy appeared on the cover of TIME magazine, drawing national attention to the problems of inner city youth in America.
YUMMY: THE LAST DAYS OF A SOUTHSIDE SHORTY relives the confusion of these traumatic days from the point of view of Roger, a neighborhood boy who struggles to understand the senseless violence swirling through the streets around him. Awakened by the tragedy, Roger seeks out answers to difficult questions—Was Yummy a killer or a victim? Was he responsible for his actions or are others to blame?Coming from Lee and Low in Fall 2009.Illustrations by the incredible RANDY DUBURKE!
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BIO:

In the past, I have been filmmaker, artist, and digital media producer. My animated film collaboration with jazz legend Chick Corea, A PICASSO ON THE BEACH, was a student Academy Award finalist and aired on HBO and Bravo for seven years. I also made an independent feature called A WEEKEND WITH BARBARA UND INGRID, which I wrote, produced, and directed.
I have taught animation and storytelling to inner city teens in Los Angeles with the ground-breaking group Animaction, producing over 300 films dealing with issues relevant to the kids: violence, gangs, and drugs. I've directed the documentary Fa’a Samoa which followed a 15-year-old Samoan gangbanger who had shamed his village, through the mean streets of Los Angeles.
I lived in Los Angeles most of my life but now I live in Tampa, Florida with my wife and daughter, where I am focusing on writing for teens and watching alligators.
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