The Harris Men: A Novel [Hardcover]

R. M. Johnson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 13, 1999

When Julius Harris is diagnosed with terminal cancer at the age of 55, he sets out to make amends for his past mistakes, most notably leaving a wife and three sons 20 years ago. As he races to reunite the family he once lost, he finds his sons are now men facing trials of their own -- trials that resonate with the impact of their father's abandonment so many years ago. With a compassionate voice that takes inspiration from his personal family history, R.M. Johnson's compelling novel provides a provocative glimpse into the ever-growing problem of absentee fathers as his characters grapple with a subject that will forever be an issue of great complexity and debate: what it means to be a man.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

If situation tragedy were a television genre, Johnson's bittersweet and gently didactic first novel could be made into its flagship show. The three Harris boysAAustin, Marcus and CalebAtry with various success to live their adult lives as they daily contend with the repercussions of paternal abandonment and their mother's premature death. When Julius, their father in absentum, discovers he has 30 months left before cancer takes him, he decides to find the sons he hasn't seen since he left Chicago two decades ago. Austin, the eldest, who benefited most from Julius's time in the house, has become a lawyer: prosperous, emotionally withdrawn and suffering in the doldrums of a comfortable marriage and loving children. Marcus, the middle son, his mother's favorite, is a wary loner, a touch righteous and embittered that fate left him all alone to raise his younger brother, Caleb. For his part, Caleb carries on the legacy of precarious domestic arrangements. Self-hating and a self-designated black sheep, he struggles to support his girlfriend and to raise a young son. As we are introduced to the brothers Harris, Austin is leaving his young family; Marcus's fears about the pain implicit in intimacy are inhibiting him emotionally and Caleb, fleetingly buoyed by a job opportunity, is plunged again into desperation. Circumstances force the estranged brothers to reacquaint, and in this uneasy new relationship Julius finds them. His remorse, and the quickened neediness of his sons, brings these men closer than they have ever been. In unremarkable yet unfaltering prose, Johnson looks at the microcosm of one African-American family and in so doing bears sympathetic witness to the widespread American phenomenon of fatherless households and absent role models. Agent, Elizabeth Ziemska at Nicholas Ellison.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

YA-Having been diagnosed with terminal cancer, Julius Harris regrets the streak of selfishness that led him to leave his wife and three young sons 20 years earlier for some vague dream of excitement, and he wonders if it is too late to contact them. As Julius and his partner, Cathy, make their way from California to Chicago to see his sons, readers meet the men those three young boys have become. Austin, an attorney with a successful practice, is about to desert his wife and young children just as the father he adored had done. Marcus, a freelance graphic artist, is too afraid of the pain of desertion to risk falling in love, and seethes with hatred for his father. Caleb, the youngest, struggles to stay out of trouble while living with his girlfriend and their baby. Johnson shows the progression in each of the brothers' lives since that fateful day when their father left. The story of the ripple effect on family caused by the actions of individual members is universal in theme. Most young adult readers should find something in these African-American characters to which they can relate. The technique of presenting the story in flashbacks and present-day scenes, told from the alternating viewpoints of the sons and their father, keeps the narrative interesting and evenhanded in its perspective. A compelling look at the ramifications to a family bound by the dynamics of abandonment.
Carol DeAngelo, Kings Park Library, Burke, VA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; First Edition edition (April 13, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684844702
• ISBN-13: 978-0684844701
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (75 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,884,349 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT NOVEL, April 17, 2000

By 

D. LEE "dml48221" (Palo Alto, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: The Harris Men: A Novel (Hardcover)

THIS BOOK, ALONG WITH "WALKING THROUGH MIRRORS" WRITTEN BY BRIAN KEITH JACKSON, ARE PROBABLY THE BEST BOOKS I HAVE READ IN A VERY LONG TIME. FOR A DEBUT NOVEL, I THOUGHT THE BOOK WAS INCREDIBLY WELL WRITTEN. I APPRECIATED THE AUTHOR TAKING THE TIME TO DEVELOP HIS CHARACTERS. SPECIFICALLY, I FOUND THAT THE AUTHOR TOUCHED ON THE ISSUES EACH BROTHER FACED AS IT RELATED TO EACH RESPECTIVE BROTHERS BIRTH ORDER. AUSTIN HAD A DIFFERENT VIEW OF HIS FATHER THAN DID MARCUS AND CALEB BECAUSE HE WAS THE OLDEST. LIKEWISE, MARCUS WAS PROBABLY THE MOST DEVASTATED BY THE DISSERTION OF HIS FATHER BECAUSE HE WAS THE MIDDLE CHILD AND HAD TO FACE HIS MOTHERS DEATH, FATHERS ABSENCE, AND RAISING HIS YOUNGER BROTHER. THE ABSENCE OF THE FATHER HAD MUCH DIFFERENT EFFECT ON CALEB BECAUSE HE NEVER REALLY HAD A STRONG AND LASTING RELATIONSHIP WITH EITHER OF HIS PARENTS BECAUSE HE WAS THE LAST BORN. ALSO OF INTEREST WAS THE ROLE REVERSAL WHICH TOOK PLACE TOWARDS THE END OF THE NOVEL BETWEEN AUSTIN AND MARCUS. ALTHOUGH THROUGHOUT THE BOOK, MARCUS WAS THE ONE TO TRY AND KEEP THE BROTHERS TOGETHER,MUCH TO THE DISMAY OF AUSTIN, IT WAS ULTIMATELY AUSTIN WHO TRIED TO MAKE PEACE BETWEEN MARCUS AND JULIAN. HOWEVER, MARCUS' REQUEST OF HIS FATHER AT THE END RESULTED IN KEEPING THE BROTHERS TOGETHER WHICH I THOUGHT WAS INTERESTING. ALL IN ALL, I THOUGHT THE AUTHOR DID A GOOD JOB WITH A DIFFICULT SUBJECT MATTER AND THIS SHOULD BE REQUIRED READING FOR ALL BLACK MEN WHO ARE CONTEMPLATING HAVING CHILDREN. THIS BOOK POINTS OUT THE INCREDIBLE RESPONSIBILITY INVOLVED IN RAISING CHILDREN AND HAVING A FATHER FIGURE AND UNFORTUNATELY, THE PAIN, CONFUSION, DESTRUCTION OF LIFE AND LONG LASTING EMOTIONAL EFFECTS WHICH RESULT WHEN FATHERS ARE ABSENT. I HAVE ORDERED AND LOOK FORWARD TO READING "FATHER:FOUND", THE AUTHORS SECOND NOVEL.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why did the book have to end?, January 29, 2000

By 

Vicky (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Harris Men: A Novel (Hardcover)

This has to be on my top 5 list of the best books I ever read! Since this is the author's first book, I can't wait to read his other books. It's about 3 grown, black brothers who live different lives. They are all dealing with the disappointment of their mother passing and their father leaving them when they were boys. What I found amazing about this book is it didn't once mention infidelity among the brothers. They had female relationship problems but they never cheated. I liked the way the brothers handled their father reappearing after so many years. The author is awesome! You will get your money worth! The book should be made into a movie.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Execellent! Well written!, November 24, 1999

By 

Char Bah - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Harris Men: A Novel (Hardcover)

The VA Book Lunceheon Group has 12 members and all of them thought this book was great. The characters were well defined. The author kept the readers' interests in the book until the end. Many of our members felt that this book was based on a true story. Also many of our readers had a hard time finding this book in the libraries and book stores in the Washington, DC area. Our group wants to know whether the author is planning on doing a sequel to this book and we also look forward in reading books by this author.