Coney
Harry Catzker is a Jewish boy growing into adulthood on Coney Island during the 1930s. His life is intertwined with a cast of characters that vary from the unusual to the criminal. Harry, New York, and the world sit on the brink of traumatic change.
New York has its “private parts,” its business end, its reaching arm, and its eye on the world. This book exemplifies that concept perfectly. There is no apology when Ducovny weaves a tale of a boy, his family and the environment that was New York in the thirties. Starring freaks, immigrants, and gangsters, this tale is in its characters — their good points and their bad points — and the characters are the epitome of New York. The setting is everything the reader imagines New York to be in the 1930s to the point of perhaps being a touch stereotypical. This book is without a doubt a coming of age story. However, it is not just that simple. It also shows the coming of age of a city more famous for its vices than its virtues. The real point of the story is in the unexpected rather than the assumptions.
This story is a wonderful portrait of life in early 20th century New York. Its author brings to it a solid background in the city and in Jewish life. While the somewhat jumpy style and the story will not appeal to everyone, the plot is well written, fluid from start to finish, and an example of excellent historical fiction.
