BOOK CORNER
By Marissa Wells
Contributing Writer
“The Confidence Chronicles,” by Cheryl Dorsey is an insightful new biography and crime memoir that tells the story of Maverick Miles Nehemiah.
“As a law enforcement professional, I thought I had seen and heard it all in terms of felonious criminality,” said Dorsey, a former sergeant with the Los Angeles Police Department. “I wanted to introduce the world to a real life, still living, Black anti-hero who engaged in a sophisticated counterfeiting scheme.”
Dorsey was compelled to tell his story.
“Although a criminal, Mr. Nehemiah is sympathetic and someone who many people will be able to relate to,” Dorsey said. “Mr. Nehemiah made a conscious decision not to do harm in his community or to small businesses; rather he took on the U.S. Government and made them pay.”
Readers of color that have been through the penal system themselves or have family members who have may relate to the book as well.
“What he went through post release is very relatable because his main goal was and is to never go back,” Dorsey said. “To not get caught up in that recidivism cycle that so many Black men fall prey too, particularly when you have a probation or parole officer who’s top gunning for you, and his was.”
Dorsey hopes readers of her book are moved by Maverick’s story of redemption.
“I want people to first know the story because what we often hear are stories about the glamorization of pimps, drug dealers and gangsters, and although he is technically a criminal, he’s a criminal with a very unique mind, and I’m sure that will resonate with some folks out there who think differently and encourage them that should they act on an impulse and find themselves incarcerated, there’s life after that,” Dorsey said. “There’s so much more left that you can do and can contribute after that, you just have to know it, believe it, and then go for it; he’s an example of that.”
“The Confidence Chronicles” will be enjoyed by true crime fans and readers 17 and older.
In addition to being an author, Dorsey is an advocate for human rights and serves as a public speaker and a media expert on policing. For more information about the author and her work, visit cheryldorsey.com.
“The Confidence Chronicles” is available for $19.99 via cheryldorsey.com and Amazon.