Arthur J. Levy

Trouble in Flatbush: the Adventures of a 12 Year Old in Mid 20th Century Brooklyn Arthur J. Levy

The reader of Trouble in Flatbush is given a picture of 1948-50 Brooklyn in stunning detail through the eyes of a 12-year-old boy. This account is a meticulous biography of place. The voice of the 12 year old is funny and sweet. His adventures are tumultuous and the schemes invariably lead to intrigue and trouble. The sensations of mid century Brooklyn are all there: rose bushes on chain link fences, odors of horse droppings behind horse drawn carts, the excitement and dare of rides at the otherworldly setting of Coney Island and the sanctuary of a dead-end street. The adventures that took place there were burned into the memory of the author. The pulse of Brooklyn in 1950 is there. The boy senses change in his family and seeks to discover the cause. The year was filled with secret plots, stealth and disobedience. Finally, during a seedy show in the Midway of Coney Island he discovers the root of the trouble and shares a secret with his father. The naive days of childhood are at an end.