Little Boy Blue [Import] [Paperback]

Edward Bunker (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 301 pages
• Publisher: No Exit Press (1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1874061262
• ISBN-13: 978-1874061267
• Product Dimensions: 11.6 x 8.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,066,779 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars it could happen to you, December 1, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Little Boy Blue: A Novel (Paperback)

All I can say is that "Little Boy Blue" is a blueprint for how a troubled boy can be transformed into an adult sociopath. Ironically, the system that is supposed to reform him is the culprit in pushing him toward further hopelessness and delinquency. Alex Hammond is basically a good kid with good instincts who is battered by authority until he lashes out and becomes submerged in hatred. There are many instances when he can choose between obedience and rebellion, and even though he inevitably decides to rebel, he often seems to have little choice. Frustration with a dictatorship of adults who have little patience or tolerance for the special needs of this disturbed boy sends him hurtling on a collision course with tragedy. Especially troubling is the scene where Alex is placed with relatives who are inflexible in their method of discipline--he seems to be making slight progress when a fabricated lie shoves him back down the mudslide. Here Alex actually shows a hint of conscience--or has he simply gained dominance over the aggressor? The harrowing course of his life is told in uncompromising, brutally-honest terms. Every professional involved in rehabilitating children should own a copy of this book. It chronicles the downfall of innocence, introducing a doomed child whose life is always threatened by an undercurrent of depression.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The internal and external making of a juvenile delinquent, October 13, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Little Boy Blue (Hardcover)

Edward Bunker cuts through the fluff of American social pathology theory and the disingenuousness glorification of popular gangster culture to present this straightforward tale of how a bright, inquisitive boy becomes a juvenile delinquent and, eventually, a criminal. Bunker, while not ignoring the effect of the "system" of the 1940's and 50's on driving Alex Hammond down the wrong path, emphasizes his protagonist's temperament - specifically, his flaring hot temper - in his wayward development. "Little Boy Blue" poignantly captures the duality of Alex's desire to be normal and free with his interfering need to feel powerful and respected amidst the twisted mores of the juvenile criminal class. The reader can't help but cheer for Alex as he eludes the authorities, all the while knowing his "victories" are pushing him farther and farther away from the chance for a genuinely fulfilling life.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Taut, poignant and shocking, June 29, 2000

By 

D. Ross "http://directorblue.blogspot.com" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Little Boy Blue: A Novel (Paperback)

If you appreciate crime fiction that is firmly rooted in reality, the upbringing of Alex Hammond as told by Bunker is stark, sad and brilliantly told.

The product of a broken LA home in the forties, Hammond's world is one of petty crime, reform schools and not so petty crime; a sequential stream of vignettes that inevitably leads from 'gladiator school' to big-time crime and (of course) prison.

All of Bunker's books are outstanding... and I'm awaiting my Amazon shipment of 'Education of a Felon' with baited breath. It will be interesting to contrast 'Little Boy Blue' with the non-fictional account of his life.