The Ryer Avenue Story [Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio Cassette]

Dorothy Uhnak (Author), John Durbin (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1996

A murder in a Bronx neighborhood in 1935 has lifelong consequences for six youths, one of whom is the killer, and one of whom sees his own father executed for the crime. By the author of Policewoman. 50,000 first printing. $50,000 ad/promo.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Veteran police novelist Uhnak ( Law and Order ; The Investigation ) leaves the precinct house behind as she traces the lives of six Bronx neighborhood kids--boys and girls, Polish, Italian, Irish, Jewish--in this oddly unfocused tale, which unfolds over four decades. An act of violence binds them together: on a snowy night in 1935 they beat a hostile drunk with a shovel. Even though one of their fathers is convicted and executed for killing the man, the children continue to keep their secret. Through WW II, the Cold War and the 1960s, Uhnak follows their intersecting paths from Hollywood to Europe to Washington, D.C., to Manhattan and back to Ryer Avenue in the Bronx, where it all began. A prominent psychiatrist, a U.S. senator, a heroic fireman, a Roman Catholic bishop, an Israeli statesman and an international movie mogul, they are an ambitious and successful group, each with his or her own trials and tragedies. But Uhnak makes none of these colorful protagonists consistently real and convincing. At times their lives are unique and compelling, but more often they are derived from familiar ethnic stereotypes or simplistic psychology. Because the plot is spread out among them--and among generations of their family and friends--the narrative loses any center. When their youthful crime resurfaces after 40 years it seems irrelevant, a clumsy device to bring them together and end the book.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

An account of one fateful night in December 1935 marks the beginning of this story about five boys and one girl who are brought together by the beating death of a drunk. The narrative follows the lives and successes of each of the six as they grow into adults. There is Father Eugene O'Brien, whose angelic good looks are a burden to his religious calling. Firebrand Megan overcomes a crippling bout with polio to become a doctor and a driving force in the women's movement. Then there is Willie, the Hollywood mogul whose hateful vengeance threatens to destroy the lives of the others. This well-written, compelling tale is a genuine find. Narrator John Durbin reads in a well-paced, level voice that invites attention but never intrudes. Recommended for larger fiction collections.
- Susan B. Lamphier, Somerville P.L., Mass.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Chivers Audio Books; Unabridged edition (January 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1560548665
• ISBN-13: 978-1560548669
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 2.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,404,624 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worth the read, May 29, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Ryer Avenue Story (Hardcover)

I love to read, and one day I picked up this book because I'd read everything else in the house. It wound up being one of the best books I have ever read. The story takes you through the lives of each character, from the time they were young to the time they are old (or die). You become so familiar with the characters, they are almost like your friends. Although the single event that ties everyone together is not as horrible as the characters think, their lives are remarkable, mysterious, courageous. I did not want this book to end. It would make a fantastic mini series!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 4 1/2 Stars -- Well Worth Reading!, February 14, 2007

By 

bobbewig (New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Ryer Avenue Story (Paperback)

I obtained The Ryer Avenue Story in 1993 and it has sat in my bookcase until recently. The experience of reading this book proves the veracity of the old adage, "Good things come to those who wait." The Ryer Avenue Story is a saga that spans about four decades and reaches beyond a murder at its center toward greater truths about family, guilt, and ambition. It is an excellent book and perhaps Uhnak's best to-date. Although The Ryer Avnenue Story is not a fast read, it holds your interest from beginning to end and has a variety of well-developed, believable characters that will stay in your memory well after you finish the book. Do yourself a favor and try to find a copy of this book -- I think you'll enjoy The Ryer Avenue Story very much.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nothing special., October 3, 2005

By 

Jana L. Perskie "ceruleana" (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Ryer Avenue Story (Paperback)

Former NYPD detective turned author Dorothy Uhnak tries for suspense in this would-be thriller about a group of neighborhood kids who know more than they're telling about a brutal murder. The characters are believable, however the storyline is too formulaic and the conclusion comes from way out of left field. No surprises here, unfortunately. I had hoped for much better from Ms. Uhnak.

On a cold December night in late December, 1935, six kids from the Bronx flee a murder scene and vow to each other never to speak about what went down that evening. Witnesses testify that they saw one of the boys' fathers kill his childhood friend. The suspect, an alcoholic in a drunken stupor, confesses and is eventually electrocuted for the crime. The events of that long ago night will haunt each member of the group as they grow through adolescence to become major movers and shakers in their communities and country. Their dark secret will continue to taint their lives, and those of the people they love, until the denouement in the final chapters.

Again, the characters are well portrayed, but the tale of kids who witness/participate in a gruesome event, keep a lifelong secret which effects them all, and reunite as adults when the "truth" is revealed at last, is not a new one. The period, the Great Depression through the 1950's, and the settings, the Bronx, post WWII Germany, Washington DC, Israel and Hollywood give the novel a bit of needed pizzazz. Overall, this is just an average read, good for a long plane or train ride.
JANA