Leaving Story Avenue, my journey from the projects to the front page

by Paul LaRosa

Paul LaRosa was a clueless kid growing up in a Bronx housing project when he discovered there might be more to life. As the projects went from idyllic to dangerous, Paul made his way to The New York Daily News where he became a copyboy and later a reporter.

The News was still the largest circulating newspaper in the country but it was in the last, outrageous and often hilarious, gasp of The Front Page era. Reporters wallowed in a swirl of alcohol, hookers and bad behavior but none of it stopped them from delivering an electric and engaging paper every day. Paul, a naïf trapped in a Tabloid World, struggled to adapt.

As a reporter, Paul had a front row seat to one of the most harrowing five-year periods in New York City the city’s brush with bankruptcy, the terror reign of Son of Sam, the blackout riots, and the murder of John Lennon. This book will make you feel like you were in the center of it all.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir

346 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 8, 2012

About the author

I'm so happy with the reviews of my memoir "Leaving Story Avenue, my journey from the projects to the front page." Here are just a few:

The NY Times: "A captivating and vivid memoir..."

Ken Auletta of The New Yorker magazine: "A poignant and funny memoir...."

The Newark Star Ledger: "Paul LaRosa nails the twilight era of American newspapers with the aplomb of the award-winning journalist he became."

Tom Robbins, investigative journalist: "LaRosa has a great ear, a great eye and a great sense of self-effacing humor...a marvelous tale of a fast-disappearing part of New York."

Of the 17 reader reviews on Amazon, 16 of them are 5-star and the other is a 4-star review.

Thanks everyone.

Paul

Reviews

[Jo Stallworth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This coming-of-age memoir about growing up and out of the projects in New York during the '60s and '70s is absent the bitterness often associated with these bootstrap bios. It is instead infused with the author's trademark humor, which is not surprising to the reader, although the young LaRosa quite stumbled into his comic wit, learning almost by accident that he had any. That he was funny and tenacious drew the admiration of his toughest foes. That he ends up in the fast and crazy world of New York City's tabloid news business somehow makes it all make sense. His life is proof that the pen is indeed mightier than the sword. An enjoyable read worth reading again.

[Lucie Paris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sitting snug in my bed, I opened a window into the New York of the 60's/70's just by grabbing the book written by Paul LaRosa.
A journey into the intimacy of the author's memories who took me to a world of full of realism to describe the hippies period, the excesses in which the "peace and love" youth reveled themselves but only known by its still powerful influence today for my generation.

While pursuing my reading, my immersion in the writer's life took on the appearance of a history lesson, it also left me nostalgic for a time when I would have liked to sniff the atmosphere loaded with possibilities, adventure and celebrities.

I'm not a huge fan of biographies. If I like a public figure or a star for its words, writings or talents although I never succumbed to hysteria of wanting to know every single details of its daily life.
However, reading the summary, I felt curiosity.
Even if I've drunk gallons of too strong "sock juice" coffee, have fought in the newsroom (figuratively speaking, of course!) or smoked too many bad cigarettes while trying to write a paper to make the deadlines, I really wanted to know what it was really like to have experienced real journalism and lived through the biggest scoops of the last 40 years …

At the mere mention of the temple of the night, sex and drugs, the famous Studio 54 and its scrolled celebrity or John Lennon's assassination, with details that only one journalist can so well described, I felt chills. To me, this time is real only through films, old clippings or old vinyl.
No live for me, just the recorded ...
Ditto for the AP or AFP dispatches, they have always been delivered via computer and my papers were never typed other than on a PC... It is this gap that touched and moved me. I was eager to know the juicy details of History when the author was reliving his story.

I took this book as an amazing gift. Before starting it, I did not know the author. I really liked what he shared. His sincerity and courage that are necessary to let thousands of strangers glimpse into your memories, your faults, your hopes. But it is his friends, colleagues descriptions that made ​​me laugh out loud or feel overwhelmed by emotions. If I had to spend an evening chatting with Pau LaRosa, I imagine myself with wide-eyed while listening to all the incredible adventures and encounters that were his daily life.
Thank you for letting me share a rich, fun and moving moment.

Lucie
http://newbooksonmyselves.blogspot.fr...

[Bob Varettoni · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a pleasure to read -- a life story told honestly, and of great interest to anyone who values the work of journalists. It was sweet without being sentimental, and it doesn't pull any punches in describing life in the Daily News newsroom in the mid-to-late 1970s and 1980s. It was loud, messy, profane, male-dominated and decidedly not politically correct. I especially enjoyed these later chapters about Paul's life as a journalist, which were made more meaningful by the background he provided about his childhood and teenage years. The Daily Planet came to life in a very real way for one young boy from The Bronx. I also took away a valuable piece of advice from this book: I think it's time I signed up for a yoga class.

[Filomena Abys-Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspirational Funny and A Must Read

Leaving Story Avenue is a must read for all. Paul LaRosa describes his struggles to climb out of a South Bronx housing project in an easy to read funny account of his life. Valuable lessons are taught in every entertaining chapter and the final message is clear, "Don't Complain - Don't Play The Victim - Just Get On With Life." Having survived the difficulties of living in a South Bronx housing project myself, I understood his struggles and appreciate his achievements. This memoir is a well written message of hope. Bravo !!! Filomena Abys-Smith

[Rayna Zwerlein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loving how I can make connections to fun times growing up in the Canarsie projects in my childhood, as well as growing up in New York in the 50's to 70's. The author writes with great insight and a lovely sense of humor, and that makes this book a great read.

[Pat Newman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read. I love anything about newsrooms of daily papers and this was a story well told.

[Kimberly Hicks · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a story that truly is near and dear to my heart, because I too grew up in the projects and managed to get out and make a pretty good life for myself, much like Paul LaRosa.

It was such a joy to relive his moments in the 70s, my favorite era, and to follow his journey into the world of journalism, something I always wanted to do. It was absolutely great to read of all the things he went through to get where he is today!

There were so many funny stories he shares with his readers and I could not stop laughing at some of them. This novel is certainly not a comedy, but the things he and his friends did as kids, I can so relate to. Paul is a very gifted writer, which you will experience through his words on the pages. Outstanding read and downright wholesome. It makes me want to pursue journalism again, but at this point, there really isn't a point, but hey, you never know. You will most definitely enjoy this book!

[Joel Friedlander · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book caught me by surprise, since I don't often have a chance to read all the way through books I'm designing for clients. But Paul LaRosa caught hold of me with his story of growing up in the Bronx mid-twentieth century, in the "projects" and his rise to the job he had always dreamed of, as a reporter at the New York Daily News.

The combination of coming-of-age story and recollections of a life spent in the newsroom proved to be magnetic. I share some of that background with the author, which made the story resonate, but his down-to-earth telling of the story is the real star here.

[Armando Nieves · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book; it is a memoir and is easy to read. The first thing that I always looked in a book is how many chapters it has and how long the chapters are, I like when the book has many chapters that are not that long, it just makes the book easier to read, this was no exception, I like that.

It is a memoir, entertaining, fun.

It gives you the insider look of a reporter at the New York Daily News which I found very interesting; even when I am an Engineer. Recommend it.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A definite 4.5 stars! Great book. Very well written, based on the authors own life. Set in New York in the 60s through to present day, he tells his story of growing up in the Projects, describes the decline of these communities and his own struggles with school, college and his dream to become a journalist. A lot of funny tales, great characters and what appears to be an honest insight into the world of journalists, reporters and newspapers. Highly recommended

[Alice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book!!!! Not only was the story very, very good, it brought me back to the days of my childhood since I am a New Yorker, brought up in the projects in my early years. I was able to relate to this story in a very personal way.
Although living in the projects helped to picture the story as I was reading it, you do not had to have come from them to enjoy a very good book!!

[Cortney Jensen Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book from a goodreads giveaway. While I did enjoy the stories in this book, it took me a while to get into it. It was cool to learn that the project were not always what I thought they were. I have never been to New York but from this book I imagine it to be a beautiful place filled with both horrible and wonderful things. Overall this book for me gets a solid 4-star rating.

[Alohna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book

This book brought back so many memories. I could place myself in the reality of being part 60s and 70s in which Paul writes about. It's one of those books you cant put down. The thing that I admired was the fact that his struggles and his determination, would not allow him to be a statistic of his environment. Great book!

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

LaRosa's tender and humorous memoir was inspired by his roots in public housing, catholic school, Parkchester, Orchard Beach, and the New York Daily News. For me, a boomer and native New Yorker, such wonderful material is right in my wheelhouse and made a very enjoyable read.

[Jeanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

An honest look at growing up in the 60's in the projects and fulfilling a dream of becoming a newspaper writer.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ken Auletta, author and writer, The New Yorker magazine, says:
Paul LaRosa has written a poignant and funny memoir that stretches in an unstraight line from mean Bronx streets to the newsroom of the Daily News. Along the way, in snappy prose, he sprinkles wisdom about New York, the pull of peers and of family, the ambition and pride that propels a working class kid to succeed, and a portrait of the zany New York Daily News newsroom that is one part exhilaration, and one part Front Page. At the end, readers will come to miss the engaging, self-deprecating author whose book reads as breezily as a delicious tabloid newspaper.
Theresa Weir, author of The Orchard and a USA Today bestselling novelist, says:
Nostalgic, warm, and compelling…I could hear the clack of typewriter keys as I read Paul LaRosa’s Leaving Story Avenue.

[Sandra Burns · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read, but a bit long

I enjoyed the beginning, about the childhood and the projects. Also, the early days of being in the news business. Felt that some parts could have been left out. Somewhat repetitious.

[Alison]

kindle (memoir)