Customer Reviews

Dreaming of Columbus : A Boyhood in the Bronx

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was born and raised in the Bronx during the 50's and 60's, graduated from St. Margaret Mary's Grammar School at 177th St. and the Concourse, and went to Cardinal Hayes High School before moving to Florida in 1967. In my job here in Florida, I write quite a bit. Never have I been able to capture the essence of life as a kid growing up in the Bronx and put those thoughts on paper as well as Pearson has done. For me, it was another delicious bite of the Knish that I haven't tasted in over 30 years. /s/ Tom Berlinger

Norfolk's Port Folio Weekly reviewed this book and said: "For Pearson, the world was dominated by the Bronx. And in this beautifully crafted memoir, he has brought that world to life.

His recollections of his literary experiences -- set against his memories of everday life on the street -- create a tension that is sustained throughout the book. One gets the impression that he was forever torn between the small world in which he lived and the wide world of his book-fueled imagination.

Dreaming of Columbus gives us a brilliantly detailed picture of one boy's life in the Bronx. But to a great extent, it also transcends the particulars of time and place. Regardless of where you grew up, this is a book that will help you see your own past in new ways."

I went to Catholic schools too during the 1960's and ythis book brought back those bittersweet memories. Pearson's stories made me remember what it felt like to grow up, the joy and sadness of it, the laughs and the desperate sense of waiting for the imoprtant things that were supposed to happen.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I, also being Catholic, could relate to the mysteries surrounding "A Nun's Habit" and the almighty ruler. It was enlightening reading about "tricks" boys played and looking back into the 60's & 70's when all was innocent and pranks were silly. The rememberence of the corner drug store and the friends in the neighborhood who felt like a part of your family. The tightly knit friends who went with you through all the ups and downs and growing through the changes in childhood to adolescence; the finally figuring out "what I want to be" and the many roads in life you took to get there. The book was well-written and the expressions that surfaced will stay with me for a long, long time. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Kudos to Pearson!

Pearson's memories are vivid and detailed. The descriptions of his childhood, the Bronx, and Catholic School are done with care and in are in an effort to search for truth. Your heart is broken over and over again when his fathers shortcomings are revealed in a most creative way. His work gets at the heart of the Baby Boomer, and why the sixties were the times that are forever famous, from a micro perspective. A chilling account of a murder leaves you heart pumping. This is a fine work, one I would highly recommend.

Michael Pearson allows the reader to enter his world and in doing so you discover it could be your world as well. You do not have to be a boy growing up in the Bronx to enjoy this book. The experience transends time and place. Throughout the book you feel as though you are getting to know each character and the affect they have on the author. I found myself relating to either someone or something in this book. Like Peter Pan, I did not want Pearson to grown up so the book would go on, however, I will look forward to his next work.

It was like reading Catcher in the Rye -- only it was a true story

I went to Catholic schools in the 1980's and this book captured my experiences exactly -- the hard-edged discipline, the saintliness mixed with sadism, all the comedy and drama. Pearson's book placed that Catholic experience against the backdrop of the whole history of our country in the 1960's. It was a little before my time and I learned a lot about the times and the whole culture of Catholicism.

Michael Pearson, in his memoir Dreaming of Columbus, captures so precisely the unique blend of confusion and absolute certainty most of us felt in the fifties and sixties, no matter what the setting. However, the Bronx adds layers of texture and meaning not possible anywhere else. This vivid recollection is undeniably among the best.

I just finished reading Michael Pearson's "Dreaming of Columbus." It is such a delightful reading experience that I was sad to see it end. His poignant remembrances of his childhood are written with such skill and pathos that I was deeply moved. Also, his comedic mastery is a wonderful tool that he uses so subtly that I laughed out loud at some of the recollections. All in all, this was the best book I've read all year.....he's a fabulous writer! Mary Ann Wilson