The Edge of Whiteness

By Joe Montaperto

Part, "A Bronx Tale," part a bizarre, "The Razors Edge", and part the 70's movie, "Coolie High." The Edge Of Whiteness, a memoir, is a quirky coming of age story, but also also a humorous, edgy, social commentary on one community's reaction to the relentless march of change that defined a unique time period - the funky early 1970's. It is 1969 and Brooklyn is smoldering in the aftermath of the recent race riots. The family of young Joey Montaperto flees their beloved Italian neighborhood, for a New Jersey suburb so painfully white that it makes the TV show, 'My Three Sons', seem exotic. Ironically, when the high school there is then later forcefully integrated, the sensitive Joey is confronted with an even more brutal racial conflict. Unexpectedly rescued from a hallway ambush by a murderous, yet artistic, loner, he is subsequently introduced to a fascinating new world of hip black culture. Finding his soul and 'soul' in the writings of Malcolm X, he also experiences a doomed first love affair with a sizzling, but heroin plagued, Puerto Rican hairdresser. Ultimately, he undertakes a spiritual foray into the study of Islam - which all serves to cause a major conflict within his Catholic family and the Mafia restaurant where he is employed as a dishwasher.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1463791216
• ISBN13: 9781463791216
• Release Date: October 2011
• Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 0.67 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.0" x 8.0"