In Conversations with the Capeman, Richard Jacoby brings to light with concise objectivity, and yet a fierce sense of empathetic compassion for his fellowman, the bizarre and wretched existence of Salvador Agron. Jacoby, through both letters and a personal observation of Agron during their twenty year relationship...takes his readers on a horrifying journey with the capeman. From the mean streets of New York's Spanish Harlem where he roamed 'till the age of sixteen as a mindless, illiterate young predator...throughout his twenty odd years where he experienced the entire cycle of hell in New York's prison system. From the initial empty minded rebel, to the well read psuedo-revolutionary, tutored by elders in Marx..Lenin..Mao..Franz Fanon, etc. ... to Jesus Christ for some sense of redemption, to homosexuality to fill the emptiness in a soul where nobody had ever truly lived. And finally, culminating in death shortly after his release from prison. Salvador Agron was never to know a serene existence. But as small miracles would have it, the dehumanization process was over, and somehow, I couldn't help but lay this book down with the feeling that the "Capemans" ultimate victim was, Salvador Agron.

It is a wonder how a book like this wasn't published before. To tell such a compelling story with such first hand information is the way it should have be done. Richard Jacoby, a friend Salvador Agron counted on, was as good as his word. He gave an account of Salvador's life that couldn't have been told by anyone else. Not always do we get to have inside information on a person, especially a convicted criminal, society doesn't allow that...Here we have it all, every account that needs to be said is written down, everything that you wanted to know about life in prison, and life on the street for a young man who really didn't have a chance in an era that was new to everyone. Good job Richard, definitely take a bow for this true to life book.

I just recently finished reading this book and i was at a loss for words. It was overall shocking. But thats what I loved most about. It was all truth it captured his (Salvadors) life as it happened,which was most important,and the words were his own. We know what he suffered through and what he cherished most. I can honestly say when I started reading it I couldn't put it down. I loved it. Its a great read!

Excellent book. It takes you back to a different era, when tattoo shops were only on the rough side of town, and the tattooers were salty old dogs who took no guff from anyone. Full of humor in the recollections of many well respected old-timers. Very interesting to see the slight differences in recollection, by the subjects' memories of things that happened. Excellent prints of traditional flash and old photos.

So few texts have been written based on quality research into old-school/traditional style tattoos, but this one stands out as a shining example. Wonderfully laid out, providing both a historic, relationship, and spatial vision of what the tattoo culture was from just before WW 2 until the late 60's.

Excellent, and I highly recommend for anyone's collection.

James R. Giles' critical essays on Hubert Selby, Jr.'s work are a most excellent guide for interested students. Upon reading Selby's novel Reqiuem for a Dream, I was fascinated with his style and content. I proceeded to read Last Exit to Brooklyn and Song of the Silent Snow. After finishing these novels, I decided it was time to research Selby in order to compile a research paper for an English class. My passion for Selby's intense and tragic literature led me to Giles' Understanding Hubert Selby Jr. Giles' criticism was the most complete and accurate analysis of Selby's work that I could find. The edition covered all of Selby's novels with a clear, crisp, and concise diction. Giles' insight into Selby's tempestuous mind supplied the chief source and companion to my own essay on Selby. I recommend Giles' most tremendous essays to any student who loves Hubert Selby's dark and antiheroic works. I have yet to find a better analysis of Selby's novels. Every dedicated English student should explore the wastelands of Selby's imaginations, and Giles' criticism is the most capable and reliable guide.

Wow. I am at a loss for words. Never in my life have tears fallen freely from my eyes as I finished a book.

These characters come to life in the readers imagination, and it is hard to believe that such powerful writing is possible from the human mind. This novel is harrowing to read, and while you hope for things to get better for the people inside these pages, it is simply not to be. Completely devoid of cliches, there is not one phony moment in the entire read. The movie really did an admirable job of recreating the story, yet it is when Selby gets into the characters heads that we experience emotions that no movie can really create. It is disturbing and heartbreaking to travel down the dark path of addiction with Sara, Marion, Tyrone and Harry. One can only assume that Selby had some kind of personal experience with addiction, as the writing seems to come from a place of deep understanding and empathy. I have no idea what to read now, as I can't imagine I will ever read anything again in my life that pulls me in so far emotionally. I will absolutely never forget this book, and as someone who also has been through the hell of addiction, I can honestly say that this book pulls no punches, and truly manages to avoid glamorizing drug addiction, while avoiding pedantic or trite exploration of the subject. There is nothing preachy about the book - just brutal brutal honesty and complete tragedy. I cared about these people, and wanted so badly for them to find a way out of their pain. It will be a while before I recover from this one.

Let me say this up front - Requiem is very, very dark - the setting, the characters, and the message of the book are pretty bleak and hopeless. So why should you read it? First, the characters - Selby has drawn each of the four participants in this race to hell with stunning precision - after reading the book (and seeing the largely faithful movie) you feel as if you honestly know these people. Second, the terrifyingly accurate portrait of the downward spiral of addiction. Each of these characters reacts differently to his/her being hooked, but, with the exception of Sara, the brutal truth finally becomes too evident to ignore, at least until the next "little taste". The isolation of the addict is brilliantly rendered as Sara declines to go out, Tyrone gladly says goodbye to his "fine fox", and Harry and Marion lose the intensity of their love for each other to their more urgent love of heroin. Finally, it is Selby's gifts as a storyteller that provide the main reason for this book's classic status - I have read "stream of consciousness" before, but never have I been so riveted by it. The final 50 pages or so just go by in a horrible blur. Don't expect a light at the end of the tunnel - Selby doesn't celebrate dreamers, he condemns them for obscuring their view of what is with delusions of what could be. Powerful stuff.

I,... was immediately gripped with a desire to read this book after seeing Darren Aronofsky's film. I remember reading a review of the movie calling it the "Feelbad" experience of the year, well this book is a "FeelWorse". This is definitely one of the most powerful works of fiction I've ever read -it left me far more shell-shocked than the movie and even depressed for some time afterwards.
What struck me most of all was the light/darkness aspect of the storyline which pretty much mirrors the experience of using drugs or other stimulants. The first part of the book is generally upbeat with only some hints as to what beckons for our protagonists in the future. Indeed there are many moments of humour and Selby seems to promise some hope and happiness for Harry, Marion, Tyrone and Sarah which is partly why what eventually ensues is so utterly gut-wrenching. I was also struck by the religious overtones to this story, there are a couple of verses from scripture at the start of the book which I read and re-read trying to extract the real meaning, but I think now think are quite straightforward. The message seems to be that simple faith in God is a surer compass than any attempt by human beings to create Heaven on Earth or in Harry's case the quest for a pound of pure. I kept thinking over and over again of the commandment 'Thou shalt not have False Gods before me' while reading this book, is Heroin not unlike the Golden Calf from the Old Testament? With all it's allure and false promises it seems to be just as appealing to mankind and equally as destructive.
I found myself on the point of tears on many occasions during the final odyssey into hell but was particularly moved by the passage where Marion prostitutes herself in return for drug-money. Arnold her shrink, is concerned by the tracks on her arms and scarcely wants to believe the reality of her condition.
She responds to his protests in a way that chills the blood, "Because it makes me feel whole...satisfied.".
This is all the more disturbing because she has already been presented as such an intelligent self-confident young woman who lacks for nothing. You realise that she has crossed that magic boundary into the world of self-delusion.
There is no brighter tomorrow for these characters, just the constant spiral towards destruction. This book will drive an icicle into your spine - I definitely recommend it.

I've read a couple of Selby's full length novels, and his writing always leaves me heavily affected for days afterward(for better or worse). This book, a collection of short stories, was at times funny and sad, bitter and naive, and essentially is a portrayal of the most mundane and ordinary things imaginable in an extremely beautiful and grandiose way. If I didn't know better(and I guess I don't, I'd swear Selby was a psychic, the way he knows people's minds' inner workings so well). The story 'Of Whales and Dreams' tore my heart out. Amazing. Selby will burn you alive with your own emotions.

This is the first book of Hubert Selby Jr.'s that I have read and I must say, it definately will not be the last. Stories like "Of Whales and Dreams" are beyond captivating--riddled with intricate details and powerful messages. Put quite simply, this book is a must read for anyone who finds value in innovative and experimental forms of writing.

Some of the stories will make you laugh, some will make you want to cry. All main characters are called Harry. All have different lives, different stories, but something underneath is the same. What is the common thread of the different Harrys? Read the book.
This is 13 short stories as aposed to his other novels, granted,but is also the easiest book of Selby jr to read. A great place to start with this wonderful and truely original American author.

I can't remember where I first heard of Lydia Lunch. Maybe it was in "Our Band Could Be Your Life". All that I know is that whatever I read intrigued me enough to want to learn more about her. I did a little research online, found this book, and asked for it for Christmas.

I should've known something would be a little off with this book when my Mom gave me a note with the book saying how she couldn't believe that I got her to buy this book. But being the good sport that she is, she still got the book for me. Go Madre!

Within about one page of this book I realized that it probably wasn't the kind of booking I was looking to read. I thought I was going to be in for a biography of someone I had hoped would give me more insight into punk music and the punk ideals of her time. What I got was the story of a girl who took out her hate of herself and her life on many, many men (and women).

In essence, Lydia Lunch was the type of girl that all of the other girls hated. She'd steal their boyfriends from right in front of them, take them to the bathroom, have her way with them and send them right back to when she was done. She's the girl that the guys wanted for their girl in High School because she put out. She's NOT the girl they brought home to show Mom, she was the girl they brought around when Mom wasn't home.

This book basically covers the various messed up relationships and sexual escapades that Lydia had had throughout her life. Whatever freaky thing you are into, whether it's as extreme as S&M or as mild as plain ole normal sex, this book covers it all. It even covers some stuff you probably haven't even heard about yet. I don't even really know how else to describe this book. There might be one or two pages in the book that don't deal with sex... maybe... I'd give some examples of some of the nastier things in this book, but I'm keeping this place PG-13 for now.

Another disappoint was that the cover claimed that "No names were changed because no one is innocent." I took this to mean that I was at least going to get some nice gossip on some punk stars that would shock me, but I think that sleeping with a musician was only mentioned one-time during the whole book!

But the book isn't all bad, after all I did read it all in just a few sittings. One of the highlights were the tales of her exploits in California with her adrenaline-seeking boyfriend of the moment. You just had the feeling that by the end of that doomed relationship something big was going to happen. Nobody died, but there was some serious damage done and I can't even imagine how either made it out of the relationship with their sanity. I don't know why, but it was nice to read about the dysfunction of others.

After reading this book, you'll find yourself thinking that it's pretty amazing that Lydia Lunch even survived to write this book. You'll probably also find yourself thinking that you can't even believe half of what you just read. How could anybody live such a crazy life and not either A) Die or B) Be commited or jailed.

If you are into the more perverted and twisted side of life, this is the book for you. If you are looking to learn more about the life of a famed punk icon, you might want to do like I'm going to and try another one of her books.

This book is a must have for any fan of Lydia's work. I really think it's some best writing to date.

An adventure story is not like cartoons on Saturday morning. An adventure is truly dangerous and forces the participants to face their worst fears in exchange for pain, enlightenment, joy, freedom, and a new set of treacherous obstacles.

Lydia Lunch brings us along her twisted sexual landscape in Paradoxia where everything is allowed to the point where it almost kills her and others die or episodes of extreme ecstasy and pleasure transpire. What she achieves through the series of violence, sex, and psychosis is what we all should be trying to do instead of working some job.

She illustrates the consequences of living an autonomous life, thereby refusing the status quo and security of the "straight life" in exchange for living life to its extreme boundaries of death, pain, and suffering. And where has it all gotten her? Well, I believe she's what you call an artist.

Paradoxia is also partially a documentation (and I assume everything she is saying is basically true) of New York in the late 70's and L.A. into the early 80's when artists still had a chance to be just that instead of working 40+ hours/wk just to pay rent. She was living an adventure not a routine, and paying for it every step of the way. In return she received her personal freedom, which simply meant continuous struggle with either other people or her own mind. Life ain't easy.

Paradoxia stands as a constant reminder to continually recreate your life, to live it as an adventure, in order to retain control of it from your psychotic lover, your totalitarian government, or your own personal demons.

Selby is just about the best author I have ever read. His books speak to me and make me believe what each page says more than any other author. There is a fundamental, and somewhat un-nerving, realism to his books that makes them highly uncomfortable reading, but it is this discomfort which makes me come back to his books again and again. Last Exit To Brooklyn blew me away, with it's picture perfect description of desperate, (an perhaps a little extreme) cases of inner-city slum-type living, and the psychological effects it can have upon it's street dwellers. Requiem For A Dream carried on a nasty, horrid-tasting tale of drug-related woe that Trainspotting could only begin to thinly paint. And now I've read The Demon, and this is another gut-wrencher, ready to pull you under life and show you how it REALLY works.

The Demon focuses on Harry White, a young, high-flying office worker in a successful Manhattan firm, who basically spends his days working hard, travelling hard (he has to journey from his parents' place out of town to work and back every single day), and seducing hard, because Harry's favourite hobby is to pick up strange women (especially if they're married - it adds to the excitement), and then basically dump them right after he's had his fun. The book goes on to show how Harry derives an almost narcotic-like craving for women, and begins to pick up just about anyone on his lunch hour, take them to a motel, and then try to get back to work on time. The futility of his carnal desperation soon takes it's toll on his work-load, and he finds himself getting torn between 'Broads' and potential promotion.

As time goes by, it seems that Harry grows up somewhat. He gets married to a lovely girl he knows called Linda, who mentally captured him by not sleeping with him 'til they were married, thus becoming a sort-of 'chase' for Harry to find irresistable. But even through the wonders and beauty of this marriage, Harry finds himself uneasy at work, on his lunch break, and even at home. So, he wanders the streets of New York and the deep, dark depths of his psychological make-up to find new and exciting ways to fulfill his constant craving for elation, excitement, adrenaline and even terror.

The way in which the story is paced, and the way that Selby has set the story out so that it can swing from one scene of absolute horror to a beautifl, emotional journey is immense. The writing is so bafflingly simple that this, itself, provides the most starkly human quality of all. There is no complex meaning to the way Harry feels, and even if there is, trying to figure it out is futile. The mind of the character is set. No pacing, no adjustment brought on by psychological help. He is what he is, and this will shock you for being to frank. It's like looking through someone's eyes, and that's why it's so good.

I highly recommend this book. No, I dare you to read this book. How does that sound?

Thats what i said as i closed the book, i will never touch again. This was the most disturbing book ive ever read, it gave me a bad "feeling" after i set it down, it probably sounds like a clique but this book got under my skin and made me think. i believe any person could at some level relate to Harry. The way we lie to ourself and say we will do something or finish it but we end up blowing it off. A brutally honest book and the way Selby describes Harrys emotion is what truly disturbs us. Ive read over 30 books over the past year and by far this one is the best, the best book i have ever read period.Nothing will ever truly make you feel like The Demon.

Every book that I have read written by Selby, has affected me in too many ways to mention. Those people who have read The Demon, and any other books by this man know, that he tells it like it is. Anyone who cannot handle his writing, or thinks that it is too "disturbing" is turning their head from reality. His fictional characters and scenarios may be coming from his head, but they are completely real, and are totally part of our society. His subjects are things that everyday people do not see; what society deems as "deviant"; and what parents tell their children to avoid. To ignore these things is to be ignorant and naive, and to pass them of as a fallacy, is to live a life of fantasy; in a world of peace, love, and perfection. But that is not how the world is outside of the comfort zone of suburban America. Some can relate to Selby and his characters; Being a victim of anxiety and depression, having that feeling of something churning and knotting up inside of you. Read these books to understand, not to entertain and critique. There is a bitter and ugly underworld developing under our noses, and we must understand it to ever begin to accept it.

Feel the disease, to paraphrase Depeche Mode. This is a compelling read if only for a peek at pre-Stonewall gay life in Brooklyn. I, like one of the other reviewers, felt that the drag queens were a little to "out" for the early 1960's, even if it was Brooklyn. I had trouble identifying with any of the characters, they were all such a mess. I don't know a lot about recreational drug use, but in the story "Queens", the titular queens were popping "bennies" like M&M's...is that possible, or wouldn't you OD on them.

I really wasn't sure what to make of Harry in "Strike", Selby alternated between making you feel sorry for this poor closeted schmo and then made you hate him for various acts of brutality and/or cowardice. The violent ending didn't make sense in the context of Harry's character, it also reflected the homophobic myth that gays are also child molesters. This was probably function of the times in which it was written.

Those who have seen the movie, the book is quite different. Not so much a story as a pastiche of different scenes, none of which are really contected.

The best of the bunch is the last story which follows a slew of housing project denizens through their various dreary lives. Some of the passages are funny, some are heartbreaking, and all are engrossing. I liked the rhythm of the narrative and the way Selby portrayed each character from his or her own point-of-view.

I'm a big fan of Darren Aronofsky, which is what turned me on to this book. After seeing Requiem for a Dream, I read that Aronofsky started reading Selby with this book, so I figured I should start reading him with this book as well.

I was surprised to find out what it was about, if that's even possible to determine. It was fantastically written, which is the only thing that kept me turning the pages at first. As for the subject matter, I couldn't really connect with what was being said... for the first 2/3 of the book, it was mostly about drag-queens, homosexuallity, things of that sort. With Requiem, I connected with the characters on a level because of my personal experience with drugs, but with Last Exit, I connected with the characters because of Selby's amazing writing techniques.

I have to admit, though, that as much as I liked this book, I found it hard to follow with his use of the same names in different stories... and the last 1/3 of the book seemed too scatter-brained for my taste, and seemed way off the rocker with the rest of the book... I'm not complaining, just something I wasn't prepared for I guess.

All-in-all, though, this guy is an amazing author.

I first read LAST EXIT when I was in junior high school, having discovered it mixed in with a cache of other books in my mother's library. I read it twice in a week, then a few more times, more slowly, over the following months. Selby crashed into my life like a meteor smacking into the earth -- literally, like someone from another world, which was what he was reporting to me. He wrote about the life in the city around him, which ruined many and forced some to ruin others, and starved people for love and made them turn to hateful substitutes. He also wrote unflinchingly about sexual agony, something I hadn't seen addressed honestly in any fiction at all until I'd read him. He also wrote with great empathy; he didn't hate any of his characters, even the vilest ones, but wanted to give them all a clear moment in the sun for us to see. I've gone on to recommend this book to others that I know will be moved and stunned by it, and they've in turn done the same to others they know. A lot of people will reflexively dismiss the book as disgusting or depressing, but I'll say this: what's more depressing? Reading an honest depiction of the worst and the best in us, or reading something that chooses to ignore the whole question in the first place? Selby will be remembered and loved for a long time after the louder, shallower, more immediate authors of our age are left to rot.

After Requiem for a Dream, I thought the Room would be a good book to read. I was expecting an emotionally disturbing, but thought provocking book, much like Requiem, but the Room was not like the well know Selby novel. Room is a wandering and discusiting book, with discriptions of rape and tourute that seem to come from the mind of a sick and twisted man. Unlike Requiem for a Dream, Selby is not shocking yet intriging, in the Room, Selby is just sick. The plot is weak, and there is no sticking moral message in the book. It was promising at first, but left me very disapointed. I highly recomend not reading this book.

but not always a good book. The room, has an interesting premise, maybe for a short story. But for a novel it gets tiring quick. It doesn't seem to have much of a point other than to offer up two different fantasies of an inmate: one very violent and disturbing, then other benevolent. Whatever, they both get old. Some of the writing is the most disturbing I've ever read, which is fine, if it has a point. I don't believe it does. I have read two other Selby books, Last Exit and Requiem.. both are far superior to Room, Requiem is a masterpiece! So if you haven't read any selby go to one of those two first.

On the one hand this book does a pretty good job delving into the tedium that a prisoner must experience and it does a pretty good job exploring in a realistic manner the fantasies in which a criminal pyschopathic personality might engage. But to tell the truth, I got bored with the book. Maybe that's one of the points--incarceration in not an exciting thing.

Basically, the main character, the prisoner, engages in two alternating fantasies. In the first, he dreams about using his intellect to blow the cover off of the corrupt law enforcement system. In his mind he becomes the hero of the oppressed and the hero of reformers making it all the way to capital hill to regale the senate with his misfortunes. I don't doubt that many criminals engage in self-deceptive ego trips, but after 10 or so pages of redundant self-aggrandizement the reader gets the idea. The second line of fantasies involves the brutal torture of the two police officers that arrested the prisoner. In his mind he dehumanizes the policemen in almost every way imaginable. Again, I don't doubt that many convicts engage in this manner of perverse self-pleasure, but it does get somewhat monotonous as every last detail of the gruesome fantasies are laid out time and time again.

This was my first Selby book and it is obvious that he is a talented writer. I am going to give his other books a try.

Selby's first proper novel was Last Exit to Brooklyn, a searing bludgeon of a book that showed that Naturalism was alive and well, and ornerier than ever. It became celebrated in certain circles, incited several obscenity trials, was banned in many places, and generally fought the good fight. His last proper novel was Requiem for a Dream, a lacerating, anguished masterpiece that is liable to haunt one long after one reads it. That was in 1978. A collection of stories entitled Song of the Silent Snow followed; then all was still. Suddenly, twenty years later, Selby reappeared - it turns out that he had been writing The Willow Tree for all that time, and finished it only around 1998. What can a reader expect from this man after twenty years of nothing? A stunning comeback? A return to realistic form? A complete flop? Last Exit to Brooklyn redux, or something new and unprecedented? The result is, actually, a bit of all of those.

Confusion abounds, and what this book actually meant to do is not entirely clear. The Kirkus reviewer's supercilious attitude is uncalled for (one great book is more than you'll ever write, dude), but I can understand his frustration. This is the story of a thirteen-year-old black kid from the ghetto, whose girlfriend is killed by a bunch of Hispanic thugs, and who swears undying revenge. He is then found by a little old man who lives underground in a luxurious apartment, and very slowly cured of his hatred. That sounds like a sentimental fantasy, and it is one, but only to a degree. It's actually quite difficult to apply A Christmas Carol analogies, as the Kirkus reviewer does, to a book that features about ten profanities per page. In fact, Selby never altogether forsakes his ultra-realism - the scenes of poverty and desperation are evoked as powerfully as ever, the scenes where Bobby sneaks about the streets are rivetingly suspenseful, and Moishe's recollection of concentration camps is genuinely frightening. Bobby's mother only appears in a few scenes, but her all-pervasive despair is chillingly real, and the bit where Bobby sends her a letter at Moishe's behest is not only the most effective scene in the book, but one of Selby's most effective scenes ever.

But on the other hand, this is certainly no exercise in realism. Consider Moishe's luxurious apartment, which contains a workshop, an exercise room, a Jacuzzi, several fine beds, a refrigerator with a seemingly endless supply of ice cream (with chocolate sauce - Selby is determined that you clearly understand that THERE IS CHOCOLATE SAUCE in this refrigerator, and to that end repeats this fact about a thousand times), and so on. But that, actually, is not as hard to accept as the fact that Moishe apparently can produce all of this out of thin air. The book doesn't show that he has a job, or that he ever had one, and it's never explained whence he procures all the money that he doubtless spends. In addition to this, Moishe's method of raising Bobby seems to be to pamper him in luxury and ask nothing of him; the contrast between this and Bobby's old life is appropriately striking, but only until the reader starts to ask questions about what happens later. Does Moishe send Bobby to school? Does he teach him a trade? Does he even ask him to do anything? No, nowhere in the book.

And what of Bobby's revenge itself? Yes, it's for the sake of contrast that Selby had Bobby sneak out under cover of night to pursue his enemies right after the most peaceful scenes with Moishe, but this contrast is so severe as to be unconvincing. Could the thirteen-year-old kid that stared slackjawed at Moishe's tales of wartime terror, genuinely affected by them, then go out to corner some fool and proceed to cut off his ear, then return in his new clothes underground and brag about his "righteous" victory to the old man? Given all the problems with the premise that I already mentioned, it only seems completely bizarre, and not in the way it was intended to.

I suspect that Selby, after writing so many books filled with sheer hopelessness, decided to write one where the underdog finally wins one for a change. No wonder it took him so long - he clearly was unused to such a strange notion. The sick despair that filled Requiem for a Dream has been blunted to a sort of quiet sadness now, and it's actually somewhat moving to see the compassion that Selby always had for people in full light. But it's undeniable that The Willow Tree is not on the level of some of its predecessors - twenty years' gestation time notwithstanding, the book still seems muddled and unrealized. I'd welcome a kinder and gentler Selby, in theory, hoping that he'd straighten things out to himself by his next book, but from what I've read about Waiting Period, I fear that he might be losing it completely. Read The Willow Tree if you like being confused.

hubert selby jnr. is far, far from a one book author, as the room, requiem for a dream and this prove. this is a deeply emotional story of a black boy severely beaten by a group of hispanics and his girlfriend left scarred when they throw lye in her face. the boy finds himself in the care of an elderly german who tends to his wounds and tries to comfort him in his grief when the boy discovers that his girlfriend has been driven to suicide because of the attack. the boy then seeks revenge on the gang, taking it in turns to track them down. the elderly german, realising that the boy is being consumed by hate tries to make him realise that love is more important by showing him the good things in life. the one downfall in this story is the repetetive use of the words crying and laughing to describe the boys relationship with the old man but as with all hubert's work, this stays with you long after you have read it and plays on your mind a lot.

The plot of this book is awesome. I love the understanding and compassion of the main characters. Some of the story is a little overly dramatic and hard to swallow, but all in all this is an enjoyable read.