Officer Clemmons
A Memoir

As a little girl growing up in the sixties, my favorite show was Mister Rogers Neighborhood. Recently, I saw that a documentary was airing on HBO Family all about Mister Rogers. It was entitled, "Won't You Be My Neighbor?". Well, I watched it in rapt attention and had the best cry I've had in a long......more

François Clemmons, born during the Jim Crow era, had a grandmother who remembered the days of slavery, at least the times when white men "worrying" black women was a fact of life. Even though his family moved to Ohio in search of a more stable existence, the attitudes in Youngstown were not much bet......more

Originally published on The Nerd Daily | Review by Beth Mowbray If you are looking for a heartwarming new read, Dr. François Clemmons delivers with his beautifully rendered debut memoir, Officer Clemmons. The man behind the groundbreaking character on Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood has led an adventurou......more

ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! I have been, and always will be, a lover of fiction books. In the past, nonfiction books have been too full of the real world and lacking in good writing and storytelling. This memoir, while very clearly a nonfic......more

This was a quick, engaging read. Clemmons tells his compelling life story in straightforward prose. It's much more than the Mr. Rogers stuff (which is of course interesting--it sounds like they had a very special relationship despite the sadness about Fred insisting that Francois stay in the closet......more