Boys - by Roger Newman (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

". . . more than a great read; it is a source of hope." -John Sexton, New York Times bestselling author of Baseball as a Road to God and president emeritus of New York University

". . . a dynamic Southern story that teaches hard but redemptive truths." -Jason Ryan, author of Swamp Kings: The Story of the Murdaugh Family of South Carolina and a Century of Backwoods Power

". . . courageously offers a narrative grounded in honor and the indelible bonds that transcend the accidents of birth, place, and skin color." -Greg Fields, author of The Bright Freight of Memory and PEN/Faulkner Award nominee

Brotherhood is more than skin-deep.

After Alex's family is killed by the Ku Klux Klan during the Great Depression, he takes refuge in the barn of a nearby dairy farm. The family that owns the dairy, including their young son Pete, take in Alex and raise the boys together. Pete and Alex consider themselves brothers and together they navigate the Jim Crow racial intolerance of the rural South, a challenge experienced differently because Pete is White and Alex is Black.

Anticipating European war, Pete and Alex join a segregated US Army. The brothers discover their own identities amid the crucible of battle, leading them to separate for many years as they continue their careers in the Army. They finally reunite at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, in 1969. Confronting escalating racial and civilian hostility in response to the Civil Rights and antiwar movements, Alex must find those responsible for the brutal off-base beating of Pete. He must also reengage with his childhood and what it means to be a Black man with a White brother.

Review Quotes

". . . [Newman's] most profound work. Well written as always, the story of Alex's efforts to find bridges across the divides in his life is a metaphor for our society's search. This book is more than a great read; it is a source of hope." -John Sexton, New York Times bestselling author of Baseball as a Road to God and president emeritus of New York University

"Newman writes powerfully of two brothers who struggle, both together and alone, through the tragedies of war, hatred, and racial discrimination. No matter what their hardships are, Newman's well-crafted and entertaining tale demonstrates there are few things that cannot be transcended by brotherly love. Boys is a dynamic Southern story that teaches hard but redemptive truths." -Jason Ryan, author of Swamp Kings: The Story of the Murdaugh Family of South Carolina and a Century of Backwoods Power

"Within this splendid novel is a timely evaluation of family, of the bonds that unite the spirit and propel the heart. Boys courageously offers a narrative grounded in honor and the indelible bonds that transcend the accidents of birth, place, and skin color. There's a lyrical intensity that mirrors the depth of the tale, and, in the end, this book is both eminently readable and hauntingly profound. Boys belongs on the shelf of any serious reader." -Greg Fields, author of The Bright Freight of Memory and PEN/Faulkner Award nominee

"Roger Newman's sweeping novel, Boys, isn't just a page turner, it's also a brilliantly painted portrait about how two boys, one Black, the other White, during a racially charged time in this country's history, forged a lifetime bond of brotherhood that began when they were children. Beautifully written and profound!" -Joe Palmer, author of A Mariner's Tale

"Powerful and sensational best describes Boys, Roger Newman's potentially award-winning masterpiece. He brings passion and authenticity to a time and place in this country many do not wish to remember, the Jim Crow Era. This was when there were two defined Americas, one White and the other Black, both inside the gates of the military and outside: both in war and peace. He identifies two protagonists, one White, referred to by his given name Pete, called Petey, the other Black, called Boy, never by his given name, Alex. The story follows Petey and Boy from adolescents growing up on Petey's family's dairy farm, to the military during World War II, where they both enlist, Petey in a White unit, designated to do the heavy lifting while fighting on the front lines, and Boy, in a unit of his own people, serving in rear areas supporting White units. Though segregated, combat brings them together, which becomes a story in itself. Roger Newman concludes Boys with an interesting post-war scenario that makes the novel a must read." -Major General Peter J. Gravett, author of Battling While Black: General Patton's Heroic African American WWII Battalions

"Newman presents a decades spanning novel of two men's very different experiences in the US military. . . . Throughout the novel, Newman skillfully compares the two men's lives; specifically, he shows how Alex repeatedly fights for recognition for his achievements throughout his life, during which racists continually call him, 'boy.'" -Kirkus Reviews