This inspiring memoir, now adapted for young adults, chronicles Top Chef star and Forbes and Zagat 30 Under 30 phenom Kwame Onwuachi's incredible and odds-defying fame in the food world after a tough childhood in the Bronx and Nigeria. Food was Kwame Onwuachi's first great love. He connected to cooking via his mother, in the family's modest Bronx apartment. From that spark, he launched his own catering company with twenty thousand dollars he made selling candy on the subway and trained in the kitchens of some of the most acclaimed restaurants in the country. He faced many challenges on the road to success, including breaking free of a dangerous downward spiral due to temptation and easy money, and grappling with just how unwelcoming the world of fine dining can be for people of color. Born on Long Island and raised in New York City, Nigeria, and Louisiana, Kwame Onwuachi's incredible story is one of survival and ingenuity in the face of adversity. Praise for the adult edition of NOTES FROM A YOUNG BLACK CHEF "Kwame Onwuachi's story shines a light on food and culture not just in American restaurants or African American communities but around the world." --Questlove "Fierce and inspiring. . . . This rip-roaring tale of ambition is also a sobering account of racism in and out of the food industry." -- New York Tiimes Book Review Gr 7 Up-Onwuachi, a former Top Chef contestant and renowned American chef who was born on Long Island, NY, bares his heart in this YA adaptation of his 2019 memoir. He details the struggles, inspirations, and choices from the past that led to the present. The work speaks with conviction, introspection, and frankness, which is an appealing combination for young adult readers. The text doesn't seek to impress the audience, but rather aims to teach and speak the author's truth. From the ordinary to the inspired, moments from Onwuachi's childhood to young adulthood play out like recorded videos, revealing the people, dishes, and conversations swirling in his memory. These memories include snapshots of his family to experiences of racial discrimination to cultural judgments in the culinary world, which are portrayed with a sincere purpose and reflect his reality as a young Black chef. His personal and professional journey showcases a heartfelt desire to create and connect. VERDICT Onwuachi candidly declares how the weight of the trials he experienced impacted his story and fortified his culinary dreams, with an intensive reflection of family roots, aspirations, and expectations.-Rachel Mulligan, Pennsylvania State Univ.α(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. Praise for Notes from a Young Black Chef (Adapted for Young Adults): “Enough sizzle, color, and character to entice young readers.” — Kirkus Reviews "An inspirational and true story that ends not with our YA protagonist getting everything he wanted, but with a real person experiencing loss and continuing to persevere.” — Shelf Awareness “Onwuachi’s Top Chef followers and fans will . . . enjoy this frenetic account of a young Black man’s determination to create ‘a fine-dining, modern American, globally influenced restaurant that tells my life story through food.’” — The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books “[Onwuachi] candidly declares how the weight of the trials he experienced impacted his story and fortified his culinary dreams, with an intensive reflection of family roots, aspirations, and expectations.” — School Library Journal “This adaptation for young readers effectively prunes and tightens sentences, removes swear words, and takes out the recipes (as étouffée, chicken consommé, corn velouté, and egusi stew might not be big draws for young palates). While Onwuachi notes the challenges of being a Black chef in a white food culture, his dream is to see kitchens full of “white, yellow, brown, and black faces” and restaurants full of “brown and black diners, who, looking at their plates, feel seen, celebrated, and recognized.” — The Horn Book Kwame Onwuachi is the James Beard Award-winning executive chef at Kith/Kin in Washington, D.C. He was born on Long Island and raised in New York City, Nigeria, and Louisiana. Onwuachi trained at the Culinary Institute of America and opened five restaurants before turning thirty. A former Top Chef contestant, he has been named Esquire ’s Chef of the Year, one of Food & Wine ’s Best New Chefs, and a 30 Under 30 honoree by both Zagat and Forbes . JOSHUA DAVID STEIN is a Brooklyn-based author and journalist. He was a restaurant critic for The New York Observer and has been a food columnist for The Village Voice . Standing on Stories The air is so warm in D.C. tonight, it still feels like summer. It’s October, it should be night already, but the sun is taking her sweet-ass time leaving the stage. It’s just too beautiful a day to say goodbye. From where I stand, on the fifth-