Customer Reviews

Lefty's Story

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Lefty and Chris are cousins that just graduated from high school. With the real world at their feet, they see numerous opportunities ahead of them. They keep getting lured into making fast cash on the streets. Lefty and Chris soon become consumed with greed and there's no turning back. Things spiral out of control when Chris falls in love with Kyra, the ex-girlfriend of drug kingpin E-Nice. Kyra soon convinces Lefty and Chris into a dangerous money-making scheme that could cost them their lives.

Lefty's Story is a riveting debut by Raymond Francis. Francis creatively takes you into the lives of Lefty and Chris. This story shows just how quickly people can get caught up in the dangerous world of fast money. You really see how greed takes over all of the characters' lives. The moral of this story is that everything that looks good isn't always good for you. Lefty's Story an exciting story by Raymond Francis.

Reviewed by Radiah Hubbert
for Urban Reviews

Raymond Francis did a good job with this book. The characters and dialogue seemed so honest and real. Lefty was like the worst of the worst and I knew guys just like him in my High school. For a debut novel Francis did great. Now there was a few problems with the length of the book because it was too short. Some parts seemed a little rushed. After 90 pages I'm looking for more. In conclusion, Lefty's story is a must read for anyone who's lived in the Jersey/Philly area.

Reviewed by Cherri Millard
UrbanBookSource.com

In Raymond Francis' Lefty's Story you meet Lefty and Chris, two cousins--fresh out of High School--who are very close, so close in fact they might as well have been brothers.

In Lefty's Story we have a coming-of-age tale that includes all that good stuff: graduation, parties, clothes, cars, women and beefs. Throughout the story various opportunities for Lefty and Chris to benefit financially keep falling right into their laps and they take advantage of each and every one of them. Lefty is as cocky and witty as they come; he's like Muhammad Ali and treats everyone else like Joe Frazier. Chris is the younger of the two and is more laid back and reserved.

A graduation party is planned and because of Lefty's popularity he practically convinces the entire graduating class to show up. He decides to charge everyone ten dollars attending. Which is to be split with Ashley--a smart, rich white girl who has always tried desperately to fit in. The turn out is great; most of those invited show up. Before the night would end, Lefty has a hefty stash is in his possession. As the party winds down a group of outsiders attempt to crash the joint. There's a standoff between Lefty and this group, Lefty is robbed of his cash. We later find out that the robbery was all a set up orchestrated by Lefty, so he wouldn't have to share the proceeds with Ashley; a shady act honor by our main character. From here on out Lefty and Chris are brought into a lifestyle neither has ever experienced before.

The story continues with the cousins crossing paths with Kyra who is the very attractive ex-girlfriend of a notorious hood figure named E-Nice. In a club Chris interacts with Kyra until Packs--the right hand to E-Nice--spots them together. Packs puts E-Nice onto his new discovery, which leads to a brawl outside of the club and a twisted turn of events are established from this point on.

Throughout Lefty's Story, you are introduced to Red who is the father of Lefty--also a well-known drug lord and gangster--and a host of other characters. More twists and subplots are expanded upon with a strong lesson about life.

Lefty's Story was a decent debut from Raymond Francis.

What did you like best about this book?
I liked the lesson about life in this book. It had a valuable moral appeal.

What did you dislike about this book?
The book was very short; only 82 pages in length. Not enough to expand and fully develop the story and characters for a novel. Maybe this could work better as a short story. The book was filled with clichés, though some are necessary for the street tale, there were way too many. Some of the descriptions and introductions of the characters appeared rushed, jumbled, and unorganized. A lot of stuff within this book seemed to just pop up at you out of nowhere; the unrealistic encounters didn't help.

Several physical character traits and descriptions were left out as well.

How can the author improve this book?
Some more character development would have improved this book substantially. For example, Red who is Lefty's father could have made a bigger impact in the story if he was developed and given more of a role in the story. The character did play an active role, but it could have been pushed to the limits. It would have also increased the length of the overall book. How did this character become who he was? Why? When? I would have liked some more background information about this character as well as some extra back-story.

Also, the life lesson that was inserted in the book only appeared at the very end. If the author could have found a way to spread it throughout the entire read, it would have been great for the reader and the story.

Lastly, this book could use another edit to tighten the story.