Little Boy

One year after breaking up with Maria, a dejected A.J. tears open a pack of cigarettes and begins to write about the past year of his life, beginning with a date in Central Park that afternoon with his friend Megan. The date starts innocently enough; however, when A.J. spots a passer-by that resembles Maria, an avalanche of unsettling memories overwhelms him.

The beginning and end of A.J.'s friendship with Megan support the main plot like bookends. In between, A.J. recounts his tragic relationship with Maria, as well as his quest to get into the U. S. Air Force Academy after high school. In the final chapters, A.J. frames his emotional journey against a compelling backdrop: the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima by a plane called Enola Gay during World War II.

"Little Boy" captures the aftermath of a teenager’s brash decisions like no other book. It is distinctive in two important ways. First, the true nature of A.J.'s character is dubious, as he incessantly wavers between good and evil in such a realistic and gut-wrenching fashion that each reader will have a different interpretation of his moral worth. Even more importantly, however, A.J.'s story is genuine and contemporary, as it is based entirely on the author's senior year of high school. Names have been changed to protect the innocent—and the guilty.

Almost every potential reader has been either the instigator in a breakup (like A.J.), or the victim (like Maria and Megan). "Little Boy" It is not merely a common story about one adolescent's judgment; it is a human parable that speaks to the sad but truthful role that jealousy plays among relationships of all age groups.