Thanks to critic Oline Cogdill for sharing her review of Jeff Boyd’s Hard Times. She reviewed it first for the South Florida Sun Sentinel. You can order a copy of Boyd’s book through the Webstore. https://tinyurl.com/349xtdsu
Thank you, Oline, for the following review.
Book review: Gritty ‘Hard Times’ follows a teacher, his students and a corrupt cop on Chicago’s South Side
‘Hard Times’ by Jeff Boyd; Flatiron; 352 pages; $29.99
The fragmented lives of a devoted high school English teacher, his students and his corrupt cop brother-in-law converge on Chicago’s South Side in Jeff Boyd’s gritty, fascinating “Hard Times.”
Boyd effectively delves into how a community comes together in various ways, as he shows how people can rise up to their potential or be dragged down by the violence of the street. The author’s affinity for realistic storytelling with a strong sense of compassion for his characters elevates “Hard Times.”
Buddy Mack is the kind of dedicated English teacher who, against numerous odds, has been able to instill an interest in literature in his students, many of whom are poor or at-risk. Showing movies, especially those based on Shakespeare, has helped. He also has earned their respect by showing he genuinely cares.
Buddy especially is concerned that he may lose three of his students to the streets, as happened with another student not long ago. These students are Zeke, a terrific football player often in trouble; Dontell, who is brilliant but rowdy; and Truth, who is personable and working with his criminal uncle.
Buddy’s brother-in-law, Curtis Thompson, was recently promoted to the Drug and Gang Task Force, but he also been on the take for years. Curtis becomes the focus of an Internal Affairs investigation after shooting one of Buddy’s unarmed students during an attempted arrest.
Boyd takes a solid look at the professional and personal lives of Buddy and Curtis and their connection to the neighborhoods. Buddy’s wife, a successful corporate lawyer and Curtis’ sister, wants to move to a better neighborhood where they will start a family. Meanwhile, Curtis loves his wife and children but is being overwhelmed by his self-destructive ways.
Boyd shows no one lives in a vacuum — rather, a community connects each person to the other. The dreams, plans and choices of the adults and the students create a never-ending cycle. The results sometimes are out of one’s hands.
The author himself taught high school English and is the son of a police officer, so he gives an authentic look at the lives of students, teachers and police officers.
Boyd explores race, class, crime and policing with his assured plotting and crisp dialogue in “Hard Times,” his second novel. He is a talent to watch.