Steely Brown, a young boy living in Harlem, wanders the streets of the city one night, reflecting on what led to the disappearance of his father. Meeting the denizens of his neighborhood, he engages in conversations that begin to sketch the outlines of the enigma, invoking Vietnam, marital discord, paternal relationships, substance abuse, schooling and unemployment—in short, the life of an American family.
Woodie King Jr.
Steely
Dick Anthony Williams
Paul
Peggy Kirkpatrick
Mae
Steely Brown, a young boy living in Harlem, wanders the streets of the city one night, reflecting on what led to the disappearance of his father. Meeting the denizens of his neighborhood, he engages in conversations that begin to sketch the outlines of the enigma, invoking Vietnam, marital discord, paternal relationships, substance abuse, schooling and unemployment—in short, the life of an American family.
Chronicling the troubled existence of Duncan Mudge, a 14-year-old misfit who—while vying for the attention of his vacant father—struggles to fill the void brought on by his mother's sudden death.
When their father passes away, four grown, world-weary siblings return to their childhood home and are requested -- with an admonition -- to stay there together for a week, along with their free-speaking mother and a collection of spouses, exes and might-have-beens. As the brothers and sisters re-examine their shared history and the status of each tattered relationship among those who know and love them best, they reconnect in hysterically funny and emotionally significant ways.
Dito Montiel, a successful author, receives a call from his long-suffering mother, asking him to return home and visit his ailing father. Dito recalls his childhood growing up in a violent neighborhood in Queens, N.Y., with friends Antonio, Giuseppe, Nerf and Mike.
13-year-old Rynn Jacobs lives in a New England beach town. Whenever the landlady inquires after Rynn's father, she claims that he's not available. But when the landlady's son, Frank, won't leave Rynn alone, she teams up with a neighbor Mario to maintain the dark family secret that she's been keeping to herself.
Fourteen-year-old Charlie's life changes when Jasper takes his help to dispose of the body of his girlfriend, Laura. He decides to look for the murderer and falls in love with Laura's younger sister.
"Boxcar" Bertha Thompson, a transient woman in Arkansas during the violence-filled Depression of the early '30s, meets up with rabble-rousing union man "Big" Bill Shelly and the two team up to fight the corrupt railroad establishment.
Simon Birch and Joe Wenteworth are boys who have a reputation for being oddballs. Joe never knew his father, and his mother, Rebecca, is keeping her lips sealed no matter how much he protests. Simon, meanwhile, is an 11-year-old dwarf whose outsize personality belies his small stature. Indeed, he often assails the local reverend with thorny theological questions and joins Joe on his quest to find his biological father.
The story of Steve Harmon, a 17-year-old honor student whose world comes crashing down around him when he is charged with felony murder.
A small, wealthy family in New York City gets progressively torn apart by secrets, lies, and the theft that orchestrates all of it.
Nancy Drew, a smart high schooler with a penchant for keen observation and deduction, stumbles upon the haunting of a local home. A bit of an outsider struggling to fit into her new surroundings, Nancy and her pals set out to solve the mystery, make new friends, and establish their place in the community