Duck Alley

by Jim DeFilippi

Examines the lives of former childhood friends Jay Tasti, a school teacher, and Albert Niklozak, a thug with ties to organized crime, who grew up in a tough section of Long Island, called Duck Alley and how committed they are to sustaining their friendship through adulthood.

239 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1999

About the author

Jim DeFilippi is a crime novelist (DUCK ALLEY, BLOOD SUGAR, JESUS BURNED) and humor writer. His crime novels are all times humorous; his humor writing at times is criminal. Newsday called his stuff “Suspenseful, often hilarious,” Publishers Weekly added, “Excellently paced and imaginatively told,” but his favorite blurb is “Whoa, that was good.”

Reviews

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book on a cold, rainy evening in Brooklyn, NY. I remember reading Jim Defilippi's "Blood Sugar" many years ago and thought I'd see what "Duck Alley" had in store for me. This book was read during my AM and PM commutes on the NYC subway; a perfect place for the characters of Jay Tasti and Albert Niklozak to work their story into my daily grind. I liked how the flashbacks (which take place in Duck Alley, Long Island, in the 1950's) juxtaposed youthful ideals and boyhood shenanigans with a current adult crises. These flashbacks allowed me to develop separate ideas about the young Tasti and Albert vs. the adult ones and it made the current day story more complicated. At the heart of most stories, is a crisis. The crisis in "Duck Alley" is awkward, muddy, and ultimately, surprising. I always love a good surprise. This book delivered!