Review of Random Family: Love, Drugs, Trouble, and Coming of Age in the Bronx (Hardcover)

All of us have read many family stories but surely none as compelling or heartbreaking as this.

Adrian Nicole LeBlanc, who has written for the New York Times Magazine, Esquire, The Village Voice, and others, gained unprecedented access to those living inan impoverished section of the Bronx.For some ten years the author shared their existence as she documented struggles, defeats, and transient victories."Random Family" is an astonishing work of straightforward reportage;it is also written with heart.

A stunning picture of life in the Bronx drug trade, "Random Family"is traced through the experiences of two girls, Jessica and Coco.In Part I, "The Street" we are introduced to Jessica who lived on Tremont Avenue, "...one of the poorer blocks in a very poor section of the Bronx.She dressed even to go to the store.Chance was opportunity in the ghetto and you had to be prepared for anything....A sixteen-year-old Puerto Rican girl with bright hazel eyes, a generous mouth, and a voluptuous shape, she radiated intimacy wherever she went.You could be talking to her in the bustle of Tremont and feel as though lovers' confidences were being exchanged beneath a tent of sheets.Guys in cars offered rides.Women pursed their lips, grown men got stupid, boys made promises they could not keep."

Jessica's man of choice is Boy George, a young heroin dealer with money to spare and a willingness to do anything to earn more.He provides undreamed of escapes: trips, jewelry buying sprees, and a car that James Bond would envy.He's also free with physical abuse.

Coco, a fourteen-year-old, is the other girl."Boys called her Shorty because she was short, and Lollipop because she tucked lollipops in the topknot of her ponytail; her teacher called her Motor Mouth because she talked a lot."

But, school wasn't high on Coco's list of priorities.She has eyes for Cesar, Jessica's younger brother, who is working hard at becoming a thug.This pair also enjoys the big time for a while, if you can relish luxury while your friends are being murdered.

Teenage pregnancies are the norm, and being old at 30 isn't a surprise.Prison becomes home.

"Random Family" is a look at a part of our country we would like to think does not exist.But, it does and the awareness of it sears.We owe a debt of gratitude to Adrian Nicole LeBlanc for her honesty and dogged courage.

- Gail Cooke



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Review of Just After Sunset: Stories (Hardcover)

First, I'm an avid Stephen King fan.I'm pretty sure I've read all of his books but I don't think I can say I've read every word he's written....but I have to be close.After reading Just After Sunset, I'm convinced that King's true talent lies in the short story/novella sphere.He is a master at developing stories and characters quickly and like a spider can spin his web with perfection.His novels, all of them, are worth reading.You won't be sorry having invested the time with any of them, but his true masterpieces are in his collections of short stories and novellas.

Just after Sunset is comprised of 13 stories, many published previously.For example, The Cat From Hell was originally published in 1977.King displayed, even then, his willingness to experiment with publishing.Originally, only the first 500 words of Cat From Hell were published in Cavalier.Readers were invited to finish the story and the completed work was published later the same year.The story has been published, revised, and then published again.The story was also used in Tales From the Darkside. Others, such as Willa are recent creations and are a treat for the mind.

"N" continues King's willingness to experiment in getting his stories out to the public in innovative ways.The short story "N" was the basis for the animated series of the same name.

Harvey's Dream, originally published in New Yorker in 2003, is a story of fathers, daughters, and dreams and is a read that will keep you interested throughout.

Of all the stories included in Just After Sunset, my favorite is Stationary Bike.Richard Sifkitz has a belated physical and learns that his cholesterol is extremely high; dangerously so.Like so many of his generation he decides to get a stationary bike to exercise and hopefully ride off his health problems.Unlike many of his contempories, however, Richard rides his workout machine.He rides and he rides and he rides.He decides to paint a mural in the room he rides in to give him something to look at while he's working out.As in all of King's work, the simple mural turns out to be unique and Richard's bike takes him on trips he really doesn't want to make.This is a riveting story and is worth the cost of the book by itself.

Other stories of note (my opinion only) are "The Things They Left Behind", "Graduation Afternoon", and "The New York Times at Special Bargain Rates".

I especially appreciated the last section, Sunset Notes, comprising King's own thoughts about each of the stories in the collection.I always like the special note he includes to readers at the end of many of his books.

Thank you once again Stephen King."And the beat goes on!"

Peace to all.








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Review of Season of Gene: A Novel (Hardcover)

Season of Gene is a grand slam for Drive Like Hell author Dallas Hudgens. If you liked Drive (really, if you haven't already, you should check out this book), and you're looking for another page-turning, funny, fast-paced and edgy book you will not be disappointed. When Joe Rice's business partner, Gene, dies rounding third base, Joe's quiet suburban life takes some unexpected turns,invovling gun-toting gangsters, internet drug scams, and a search for Babe Ruth's bat.Funny, unpredictable and certainly enjoyable, this boisterous and raucous novel will keep you busy turning pages.



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Review of Cloud Chamber: A Novel (Paperback)

This novel begins in the late 19th century and follows an Irish "family" from Ireland to the United States.It involves five generations andand the people are very real. Some you can't help butextremely dislike but they are all such an integral part of the developmentof this family's history.The story progresses in turn by the memories ofa single character in each chapter. It is like an old tapestry. At thebeginning of it's creation you may not see much that you enjoy, but yourneed to see the final product pushes you to continue to watch it evolve. The life experiences of this family include betrayal, murder, forbiddenlove, rejection, forgiveness, faith, and finally an open acceptance of whatmakes a family a family.At the beginning of this story I felt it was verydark and sad but the writing was so eloquent that it wouldn't let me go. By the end of the book I was so moved, the story was so beautiful,so fullof heart and soul, that I realized this was a wonderful novel and could notwait to share it with family and friends. I look forward to reading YellowRaft in Blue Water.If you do enjoy this book you will also enjoyPlainsong by Kent Haruf!



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