Little Boy Blue

I had only read Edward Bunker's 1st novel before I was arrested for armed robbery and I had this book sent in to me when I was in Snohomish County Jail awaiting sentencing and it gave me a strange courage when I read it. Edward Bunker is the real deal. Nobody can touch him in terms of understandng and experience. Prison is like war; you can never understand it unless you've experienced it firsthand.Most people will never have to endure what Eddie Bunker(and me) have had to endure but because Bunker is so talented, they can get a little taste by picking up any one of his books; I've read them all and they're uniformly awesome. My first book STONE HOTEL was strongly influenced by him. I think he's the greatest.

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.

A searing roman a clef from the author of Dog Eat Dog which also does a good job of showing LA, circa 1943-45. The book traces the path of an 11-year old boy, from social service homes, through the various levels of the juvenile criminal system until the inevitable tragic end. This depressing accelerated transition from childhood to teenager is convincingly presented. Bunker is clearly writing many of the episodes in the book from personal experience, and each of the shifting cast of supporting characters are well-drawn individuals. It's a gripping story and although much has changed in the social service system since this time, yet many of the problems and attitudes shown in the book remain.

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.