The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

In some books there are characters that will either leave you cold or leave you indifferent about what happens to them in the course of a novel. In The Nickel Boys, this is not the case. Elwood Curtis from the outset of the novel stole my heart. The events that affected his life were for the most part not of his doing and tragically show the harsh cruelty that was inflicted on the blacks as late as 1960 in this country. 

Elwood was left by his parents in the care of his grandmother, Harriet, when they set out to find a new life in California. Harriet raises her grandson to respect and learn. She buys an album of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s speeches that so inspire Elwood. He is bright and is selected to attend college classes while he is still in high school. At about the same time he is unjustly arrested by a white policeman for being in a stolen car. He is sent to a reform school, Nickel School,  in Eleanor, Florida where he is to spend a year. The school is based on the Dozier School, that was so blatantly involved in the deaths of many black young men. 

Elwood tried to minimize his time there by being docile and observant of the rules. He forms a bond with Jack Turner, who goes by just his last name. Turner seems to know the inner workings of the school and has a beat on those in charge. Elwood witnesses so many acts of cruelty that he feels compelled to write an exposé of the conditions. This leads to his second confinement and according to Turner, the intent to take Curtis "out back" where he will be killed. Turner somehow manages to free Elwood and the two plan to escape. 

The narrative moves back and forth between the early1960s, the time of Elwood's Nickel School days and the late 60s when he is in New York City operating a moving company business. There is a real twist that Whitehead springs on the reader that is like a dagger to the heart.

In 2010 Elwood travels back to Florida to publicly express what transpired at that school. In actuality, much has been exposed about the Dozier school and the cruel abominations that occurred there. Archaeologists have been excavating Boot Hill, the area where bodies of the boys were interred.

Whitehead has created a work of fiction that is a masterpiece in informing and soul searching. It would be an incredible book to teach in high schools in states that are not fearful of having the truth about racism exposed. I will never forget Elwood Curtis and his tragic life.

Sunset Beach by Mary Kay Andrews

Sometimes you just need a read that is fast-paced, easy to read, and enjoyable at the same time. During this pandemic time Sunset Beach was just that kind of read. Somewhat reminiscent of Mary Higgins Clark's novels, this book was immediately accessible and engaging. 

Drue Campbell, a 36 year old former professional kite boarder, has just lost her mother, Sherri,  as the novel begins. At the funeral, her father, Brice, appears and seems to want to reconnect. Without a job, a place to live, and no money, Drue reluctantly accepts his offer of a job in his high profile law firm on the west coast of Florida. Part of the draw was that she has inherited her grandparents' home on Sunset Beach. And so she picks up and moves from Ft. Lauderdale into the cottage, which has been allowed to deteriorate to such a condition that she had to start from square one to make it livable. She tore up carpeting and scrubbed and scrubbed. In the process of trying to stop a leak in the attic, she finds a box of newspaper clippings and files from an account of the disappearance of a young woman nearly 40 years ago. She is intrigued and her curiosity gets the best of her and starts to dig into the disappearance - Plot line #1 of the novel.

When she goes to her father's office, she discovers that one of her friends from high school, Wendy,  has married her father. Wendy is intent on making the job stressful for Drue as she is his office manager. Drue is given the responsibility of answering phones and referring solid cases to the lawyers. Nothing Drue does seems to be right or in accordance with Wendy's ways - Plot line #2 of the novel. 

One of these phone calls is in reference to a possible murder at a local motel that the firm settled quickly and for a minuscule amount of money. A young mother is found dead while on duty as a maid at the motel. The firm has washed its hands of the case, but Drue finds it heart-wrenching that the woman's mother and child are now living near the poverty line because of a lack of income. Looking into the facts of the death lead Drue to a conclusion that there is more to the case than was investigated and that possibly her father's firm was involved in a cover-up. - Plot line #3 of the novel. 

With the intertwined plot lines there are supporting characters that all play a part in the resolution of the plot. Jimmy Zee, best friend of Brice Campbell, is an investigator for the firm and has known Drue since she was born. Drue meets a number of young men who will unwittingly play a role in her detective work - Jonah, Corey, Ben. Are they all out to help?

Along the way there are some plot twists and some disturbing innuendos. All go to keep the novel absorbing and moving along. Drue was a likeable young woman, but sometimes unrealistic in her actions. A great page-turner for enduring pandemic time.