Fiction

The Boy Without a Flag

Tales of the South Bronx
A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF THE YEAR
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From Abraham Rodriguez, Jr. comes “a first book of fiction … in which brutality is controlled by sophistication” (New York Times).

In these truth-telling stories about a neighborhood of Puerto Rican adolescents growing up in the South Bronx, Rodriguez introduces us to the youth who fight every day for survival in our cities. Here we meet those who, in the author’s words, occupy “the rancid underbelly of the American Dream. These are the kids no one likes to talk about; they are seen as the enemy by most people. I want to show them as they really are, not as society wishes them to be.”

ISBN
9781571310286
Publish Date
Pages
120
Dimensions
5.5 × 8.4 × 0.38 in
Weight
5.8 oz
Cover Art

Praise and Prizes

  • “Nervy, anguished, and brilliant writing by a New York Puerto Rican … These stories are unsentimental accounts of the lives of angry children who are forced to grow up too quickly, whose small triumphs are almost always overwhelmed by the relentless tragedy of inner-city America… . Uncompromisingly bleak, and brilliant.”

    Village Voice

  • “Abraham Rodriguez’s descriptions of the bleak lives of his South Bronx teenagers have a knifelike precision… . In the quiet sophistication of his title story… the father’s betrayal is shocking to the son, but also instructive… . This poignant story derives its power from a rare emotional depth.”

    New York Times

  • “Unforgettable … From a place where schooling promises nothing, where television means escapism into the World Series and Lotto drawings, Abraham Rodriguez miraculously appears. He is these kids’ bard, and he deserves to be heard.”

    Albuquerque Journal

  • “The quality of the writing, Abraham Rodriguez’s compassion for his characters, and moments of friendship and youthful fun elevate this book above the overriding bleakness.”

    Library Journal

  • “Powerful … Abraham Rodriguez’s sympathetic descriptions of his characters illuminate their fleeting joys.”

    Publishers Weekly

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