The Cook Up

A Crack Rock Memoir

By: D. Watkins

Narrated by: D. Watkins

Length: 5 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

Reminiscent of the classic Random Family and The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace but told by the man who lived it, The Cook Up is a riveting look inside the Baltimore drug trade portrayed in The Wire and an incredible story of redemption.

The smartest kid on his block in East Baltimore, D. was certain he would escape the life of drugs, decadence, and violence that had surrounded him since birth. But when his brother, Devin, is shot - only days after D. receives notice that he's been accepted into Georgetown University - the plans for his life are exploded, and he takes up the mantle of his brother's crack empire. D. succeeds in cultivating the family business, but when he meets a woman unlike any he's known before, his priorities are once more put into question.

Equally terrifying and hilarious, inspiring and heartbreaking, D.'s story offers a rare glimpse into the mentality of a person who has escaped many hells.

©2016 D. Watkins (P)2016 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

" The Cook Up is classic and cinematic, told with an observational acuity that hits you where it hurts." (Frannie Kelley, host of NPR's Microphone Check)

"D. Watkins is his generation's David Simon. Another brilliant storyteller who takes you into the heart of East Baltimore and never flinches as he shows you the real." (Touré, author of Who's Afraid of Post-Blackness? What It Means to Be Black Now)

" The Cook Up is an important story for both black and white America, as well as this country's political leadership, to read, if we're truly going to tackle the challenges that are facing our communities all across the country." (Chuck Todd, correspondent on NBC's Meet the Press)

AMAZING!!!

The words made the story come to life. I didn't want the book to end.

You’ll listen to it all at once.

This book is fire and you won’t stop reading.
It is extremely insightful and teaches you a lot. Start listening you won’t regret it for a second.

Good Story Bad Narration

I thought the author could've narrated the book better. There wasn't many inflections in time to differentiate and give more life to the various people in the story.

For Real?

At first, I wasn't sure this story was true. Sadly, I guess it was, as I see the author has written other books.
Sadly, in the sense that people adapt to their surroundings, even when their situation is horrific. This book really spells that out for the listener. We're talking drugs in East Baltimore at the height of the crack epidemic. How normal the chaos was to the people living it.
I would suggest slowing the narration down a bit. Made it easier to understand.

Very worthwhile

Interesting inspiring story. Well worth the listen.
An first hand, inside look at the life and struggles facing black youth and black society in Baltimore. I heard the author being interviewed on US public radio and knew I wanted to hear his compelling story. I wish the author well.

True B more story

This book is real and written for others to truly see Baltimore. Watkins kept it 💯 and made you understand the lack of support necessary for kids to succeed in something other than the drug game. Trading one addiction for a "legit" addiction is powerful to understand why communities are and stay impoverished

Wow

Didn’t want it to end. Gotta tell the stories of the inner cities. Bmore is a special one.

A must read...

This is an authentic and raw account of life in Baltimore. Watkins is a brilliant storyteller who takes you through his life growing up and making it in an inner-city when so many odds were stacked againt him. A must read.

A Great Baltimore Story

This a great story about D Watkins' upbringing and the trails and tribulations that he experienced in Baltimore. I live 20 minutes from Baltimore so this hits very close to home. I've had the opportunity to meet Watkins multiple times in Baltimore, sparking conversations, ultimately leading me to intellectual insights and a new perspective on social issues. He left the drug fueled fast money lifestyle as a prominent drug kingpin in Baltimore, to teach English and instill change in his community. To this day, Watkins continues to be one of my true life idols that you can have an honest conversation with. One that is not self consumed with his fame, relatable, and promoting a skill (literacy) that changed his life in his community.

Fantastic!

Authors doing their own audiobooks can be hit or miss but this was done beautifully. The story draws you in right away, the main thing obviously was seeking how the story would wind around the path from a life in the streets to a rebirth on the other side of the game.

This is a story that can and will help first and foremost young Black people, but also many other youth and even people who are older that are looking for themselves.