Books published by Little York Books

In 1953, the memories of the war were fading but not gone. The kids that stuck together likeglue through the shadows of the war, are now coming of age, growing like weeds with a summer vacationstarting before they become Freshman in high school. They''re dealing with growing pains of the bodyand mind - and they reconnect at the cemetery in the late spring just to catch up. Little did they know they (and you) were in for a year not soon forgotten. Truth be told this is pretty much how it all happened...this is how times were in the day. Book One - Summer Vacation - Book Two - A Halloween Caper -Book Three - a Thanksgiving to Christmas adventure proving that Black Lives Matter to thePompey Hollow Book Club.

In the opening of the titular love story, Jerry, rather appropriately, is enamored. It’s 1966, and the 20-something is a groomsman for a friend’s Long Island wedding. He catches a glimpse of one of the bridesmaids—Pamela, as it turns out—and is immediately smitten. The nearly 7-foot-tall groomsman is coupled with Pamela, the tallest of the women, for the ceremony, and they even get caught in a photo together with a passing Robert F. Kennedy. But after the wedding, Pamela heads back to Paris, where she works as a model. Ten years pass, and Jerry has the opportunity to spend an evening with Pamela, an unforgettable encounter before the two reunite decades later. Antil’s tale grows more endearing as the couple’s romance becomes more familiar. Jerry, for example, initially idolizes Pamela, whose modeling days were spent mingling with celebrities, but as he gets to know her (favorite movies and books), it’s an unquestionably strong connection between real people. The remaining trio of tales in the collection delves further back into Antil’s history, each revolving around Christmas with his family. The hilarious “Richard Leaves the Choir Breathless” spotlights 6-year-old Jerry’s older brother, Dick, who’s in trouble so often at Roman Catholic school he’s mastered the art of sleeping while standing in the corner. His performance for the school’s Christmas pageant is, not surprisingly, a showstopper. “Postwar Shortages and Shortfalls” is likewise amusing when a holiday gift for the children’s mother leads to a mishap at a bank that may traumatize the family with embarrassment. The book ends with “A Cazenovia Christmas Past,” the gloomiest of the bunch. In it, preteen Jerry and his siblings are shocked when their father is diagnosed with tuberculosis and leaves the family to stay at a sanatorium. Not sure when his dad will return, if at all, Jerry may miss out on the joy of the childhood he’s experiencing, including a summer job and young love with the new girl at school, Judy.Winsome stories of love and unbreakable bonds, notwithstanding tragedy or years of separation.

One More Last Dance is a compelling story about the power of friendship, one that develops between two men through an unlikely road trip.Peckerwood Finch has a lot going against him. The 25-year-old Cajun man was abandoned at birth by his parents, endured abusive foster parents, is illiterate, and there's his namean unflattering term for a rural white Southerner. Fortunately, he's affectionately known as Peck (his given name is Boudreaux Clement Finch). Peck is a fisherman and mows the grass at a small hospice on a Louisiana bayou. There he meets Gabriel ';Gabe' Jordan, an elderly African American man dying of cancer whose final wish is to attend the Newport Jazz Festival. Despite his own shortcomings, Peck is determined to make Gabe's dream come true.The new friends hit the road only to be stymied by, among other things, a lack of funds and Peck's poor sense of direction. At times, guardian angels come to their rescue, including a wealthy real estate broker who offers to buy airline tickets, among many other generosities. But Peck has no form of identification and must travel by bus while Gabe flies. The bulk of the story then concerns Peck's adventures en route.

Jerry leaves upstate New York for the first time at twelve.  He travels to Little Rock Arkansas in 1953 to visit an aunt who was about to have a baby.  He sees Jim Crow for the first time, not being allowed to sit in the balcony of the movie house as it was reserved for "Coloreds Only".  Jerry and his freiends hadn't been raised with such predjudice. This bothered the lad - so much so that he got a special visitor one night following his bedtime prayers - divine guidance.  The life maturing experiences he had witnessed in the south were about to be turned into one of the best adventures Jerry and his friends, the Pompey Hollow Book Club have ever had.  The south would never be the same, again!  It just so happened that in Little Rock, on a secret snooping mission for a story, Ernest Hemingway just might be an opportunity for Jerry to get something done.  Hemingway had learned that Eisenhower was readying troops to enter Little Rock to aid in the desegragation of the public schools. He went there for a story.  Jerry was about to be in the middle of it all.Hemingway, Three Angels, and Me tells the unique story of a boy who witnesses the prejudice of the Jim Crow era firsthand and then enlists his friends, family members, and neighbors to help Anna Kristina, one victim of that prejudice. The themes of the novel, including racial prejudice, cultural differences, coming of age, and the effects of war, will resonate with modern readers, both young and old. The moral of this story—that it is never too late to make a difference in other people’s lives—is neatly summarized in the epilogue, yet the novel never feels “preachy.” There aren’t any unanswered questions in the novel, and the readers will feel satisfied by the ending.The novel is generally well structured, and the plot moves at a good pace. The chapter breaks seem deliberate and work well within the novel, often creating a sense of suspense without interrupting the action. In a slightly different vein, the references to the holidays (specifically Thanksgiving and Christmas) serve to make the time frame of the story very clear.The structure of the novel is fairly typical for the genre. The structure of the novel supports the story. In particular, the structure supports Jerry’s telling of the story: it allows him to really reflect on events and memories but also to tell his story in an engaging way. The amount of introspection he offers works well for the genre and is smoothly integrated into the dialogue and the action.The first chapter of the novel does a good job of drawing the readers in; it immediately establishes the character of Jerry, offers a bit of historical context, and makes clear the setting of the novel. It’s also rather intriguing, and I was particularly curious about the reference to guardian angels.