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Book Bag
From coming of age to coming home, and finding peace Reviews by Melanie Cisse
King of Angels
he and his wife began their family. He has never had any formal training in art, but has been creating his own art since he was a child. “When I was younger, I had to occupy my own time, and that’s how I started drawing,” he said. He served in the New York State Army National Guard from 1949 to 1951, and has won 16 medals and several awards after 30 years of service in the military. The themes addressed in Conceptual Art include the importance of friendship, the complexity of human emotion and the gratification one receives from celebrating oneself. The groundwork “comes from within,” said Mr. Stewart. “It’s an emotional outlet for me. It’s like a dialogue between me and my audience.” Mr. Stewart believes his art is simply an expression of his journey, which is why versatility and interpretation are so integral. A short written statement by the author accompanies each piece. One of his drawings depicts a man, wide-eyed, and open-mouthed. The man seems surprised, shocked by something or someone. Mr. Stewart’s own description reveals that the man is panicked. Panic, Mr. Stewart goes on to say, is the most frightening human emotion, turning the most rational person into a “rampaging animal.” While several of Mr. Stewart’s drawings reference emotions and their unpredictability, others are uplifting and hopeful. Mr. Stewart belongs to the Riverdale Art Association, where his work can sometimes be found on display. His work can also be found at the Veterans Hospital.
By Perry Brass
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t’s 1963. The Beatles have just become a phenomenon. John F. Kennedy is President and racial tensions run high as the Civil Rights Movement progresses. The country is changing quickly. In a small suburb near Savannah, Ga., 12-year-old Benjamin (Benjy) Rothberg is going through some changes of his own. Perry Brass’ King of Angels is the story of a young boy trudging his way through the mystifying world of adults and the hypercritical world of children. Mr. Brass takes readers on Benjy’s pre-pubescent journey toward self-discovery. As he comes to term with himself, Benjy — the out-of-place son of a hardworking Jewish father (Robby) and a Southern mother (Caroline) — must cope with the fact that those around him question his identity, his sexuality and his religion. At the heart of King of Angels is the relationship between father and son and the struggles that go along with being Jewish and homosexual in the 1960s South. Benjy is shipped off to a Catholic military school called Holy Nativity. It is at “Holy Smokes,” as students refer to the school, that he meets Tim O’Neill, an Irish hyper jokester, and Arthur Gomez, a quiet, handsome boy of Puerto Rican descent. It’s there that he discovers himself in more ways than one, allowing himself enough vulnerability to fall in love. Mr. Brass, a Riverdalian, was forced to leave his apartment while in the process of writing King of Angels. He made sure to archive the book for safe-keeping and continued to work on it while he was out of his apartment for 11 months. “Working on the book kept me sane. I was very in love with this book, more than I have been with a lot of my other books,” he said. Initially, Mr. Brass envisioned the main character as an older male and the story being set in Riverdale, not Savannah, Ga. But writing the character’s back-story made him realize that he wanted the character’s voice to be much younger. Though the book is not autobiographical, Mr. Brass said his deep emotional connection with King of Angels includes parallels he draws with his own relationship with his father, who was a southern Jew. “My father was an extraordinary person who straddled two worlds: the southern and Jewish world. He was able to move from one to the other with an amazing amount of grace. He taught me a lot: how to be proud of himself, and accept people for who they really are.” In King of Angels, Mr. Brass describes the innocent electricity of first times, and the life altering devastation of tragedy and loss from the perspective of a boy just trying to figure it all out. The richly descriptive and provocative novel allows readers to experience growing up along with Benjy, as he navigates identity with feet in different worlds. Mr. Brass is a poet, gay writer and activist. King of Angels is his 16th book. Originally from Savannah, Ga., he moved
La Verde de la Vida By Sheilah Hill
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to Riverdale 20 years ago. He is also the author of Carnal Sacraments and The Manly Art of Seduction.
The Sweetest Way Home By Victor Forbes
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n The Sweetest Way Home, Riverdale native Victor Forbes reminds us of the heartbreak we experience when we lose a pet. In his first children’s book, Mr. Forbes, editor-in-chief and co-founder of Fine Art Magazine, takes readers on the adventures of a lost greyhound who eventually finds his way back home. Inspired by actual events, the book is personal to its author, who remembers how miraculous the inspirational incident felt. It all began with a runaway greyhound. “My ‘sister in love,’ her husband and child had adopted
a greyhound from the Long Island Greyhound Transfer. They came to Keene Valley to visit. To make a long story short, he just took off. After a few days, nobody expected to see him again. But everybody in the little village of Keene Valley was looking for him. Two weeks later, he came back,” Mr. Forbes said. The process of writing The Sweetest Way Home took about five years, he said, noting that the book’s sing-song quality was probably influenced by the fact that he would often find inspiration from song lyrics. Illustrator Michele Bramlett brings the words to life with her paintings of Big Grey, the characters that he encounters along his journey and the beautiful scenes of the Adirondacks. Her colorful illustrations make it easy to get lost in the world — Mr. Forbes’ shares. That world is set where his two real homes are located, in Keene Valley and Riverdale.
Big Grey is lured by a hare he spots in a grassy field. He chases after the fuzzy animal, past Snowshoe Lane to Bobcat Basin, where he encounters several bobcats lounging, painting and composing music. With some encouraging words from the Wise Old Owl, he comes closer to finding his way but not before encountering French-speaking birds at the Partridge Plateau, the dark mysterious cave of the Dharma Bear, and being chased by a clan of coyotes at Renegade Rock. Remembering his life as a race dog, he outran the clan. Big Grey finally makes it back home, reuniting with his family. Although it was a long journey, he still believes it was the sweetest way home. A warm story about finding your way back home, notwithstanding some obstacles along the way, the book is an entertaining one for children of all ages. The Sweetest Way Home also comes with a CD with mu-
sic from Martha Gallagher and Kim Simmonds, featuring four songs written especially to go along with the book. Readers can look forward to a sequel in the future.
Conceptual Art By William Stewart
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his book is more than just an assortment of art, it’s an exploration of the artist’s mind, and life. In Conceptual Art, a collection of several original drawings created by William Stewart Sr., we are given the chance to observe the universe through Mr. Stewart’s eyes, as he removes the borders from his art, leaving his work open to interpretation. His drawings range from simple leaves falling to the ground, to intricate collages of shapes and patterns. Mr. Stewart has lived in Riverdale since 1973, where
heilah Hill would often find inspiration strolling through Van Cortlandt Park. Having lived a walking distance from it for nearly two decades, her book La Verde de la Vida begins with peaceful walks through this familiar terrain. La Verde de la Vida, or “the green of life” in Spanish, explores the controversial issue of abortion, with a focus on the necessity of ending the divisive conflict. Within its pages, Ms. Hill asks readers to consider both sides of the issue more thoroughly. “I felt like both sides of the abortion issue weren’t communicating and weren’t satisfactory. I want people to see the whole picture, and to listen inwardly,” she said. The author also invites readers to take a deeper look at other issues, such as health care for needy mothers and children and the hunger throughout the world. “All of these are surely life concerns and should no longer be neglected,” she writes. As a mother of three and a grandmother of eight, Ms. Hill is deeply concerned about the world they are growing up in. She is currently working on a project titled Sometimes You Must be the Music.
2621 Palisade avenue, aPartment 9J
5910 sPencer avenue
2 BR / 2 BATH
5 BR / 2.5 BATH
$699K. WeB#3702249
$635K. WeB#3924067
DAniel WRigHT, SVP 718.878.1710
SUSAn gOlDY 718.549.4116 exT. 210
2 FAMilY HOUSe