One-Legged Mongoose: Secrets, Legacies, and Coming of Age in 1950s New York

by Marc J. Straus

“Marc Straus has written an astonishing memoir full of humor and hilarity, heart and vision. This year’s sleeper hit, I predict. A must read!”—Mary Karr, author of The Liars’ Club

It's June 1953, and 10-year-old Marc Straus is in his mother's car, getting sick from her cigarette smoke on his way to a Hebrew lesson. He and his younger brother, Stephen, are transferring from public school to a Yeshiva. His parents haven't said why they're transferring - the family isn't religious. So all Marc knows is he'll have to protect his brother. Stephen's a delicate kid other kids pick on. Marc's a street fighter who knows how to wall off the pain.

So begins One-Legged Mongoose, Marc Straus' vivid, compelling, you-are-there memoir of two years in the life of a precocious, scrappy Jewish kid carrying a dark secret as he embarks on the journey to young manhood in 1950s New York. When school starts, Marc begins commuting four hours daily to a different world, where kids are smart like him and fight with words instead of fists, and a caring principal takes the troubled truant under his wing. Marc works at his dad's textile store on Sundays, learning about honor and hard work from his immigrant father. At home, he faces his volatile mother.

Straus encounters Anti-Semitism in public school, in the community, and even in the Boy Scouts. And it's the Scouts that lend the book its title—a nod to a campfire story about a half-man, half-mongoose predator that's almost the height of a full-grown man, and that Straus and the other boys of Troop 300 are tasked with locating. But, as Straus explains, "I was willing to face it. I know all about monsters."

Marc starts rethinking his risk-taking way of life, often sidelined by injuries to his eye, polio, and a near-fatal hit-and-run. A voracious reader, he looks to books for insights - What would Santiago do? - and comes to accept that he's not invulnerable. Life will wound him, but the rest is up to him.

An unflinching look at child abuse and one boy's ability to rise above it, One-Legged Mongoose reminds us of the bonds between siblings and the power of family secrets.

362 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 14, 2021

About the author

Marc J. Straus is the author of 4 poetry collections, 3 from Tri-Quarterly Northwestern University Press. He is the recipient of numerous awards including the Robert Penn Warren Award in the Humanities from Yale. His poems have appeared in most of the leading literary journals in the U.S. He is an oncologist and former Chairman of Oncology and Professor of Medicine. He has authored some 100 scientific papers and edited three textbooks on lung cancer. He is the recipient of Boston’s Young Leader Award previously given to John F. Kennedy. Marc, and his wife Livia, have been avid collectors of contemporary art since age 20, focusing on new discoveries. Their collection has now had eleven museum exhibits and they are listed among the top collectors in the U.S. Marc lectures worldwide on building an art collection. He has written nearly 50 articles on art. In 2004 Marc and Livia founded Hudson Valley MOCA, a public museum in Peekskill, NY, one hour north of NYC, in an economically challenged multicultural community. HVMOCA has been the spark for the revitalization of the area. In 2011, Marc opened an art gallery on the Lower Eastside of Manhattan, MARC STRAUS, which represents 24 artists from 16 countries and is among the leading galleries today.

Reviews

[Melki · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 1953, even though his family was not particularly religious, Marc Straus and his younger brother were sent to a Yeshiva by parents who were certain their sons would receive a better education there than at the local public school. It was a four hour commute, leaving Marc lots of time for contemplation. Luckily for us, he remembers the time quite vividly, and relates his tales of fighting, lusting, and reading great books.

A lot of this feels like Jean Shepherd recalling his most memorable Christmas, though there are serious undertones as Marc deals, not with the possibility of shooting his eye out, but with bullies, an abusive parent, and an anti-Semitic scoutmaster. (Actually . . . come to think of it - there is an incident involving Marc's eye, but you'll have to read the book to find out all the details.)

This was an utter delight. It's hard to believe the memoir covers only two years of Marc's life; so much happens that will make you laugh out loud, cringe, and maybe shed a tear or two. I almost stood up and cheered when Marc managed to stump an obnoxious rabbi with an unanswerable question. (Take that, you old fart!)

I listened to the audiobook version of this, read by Scott Wallace, and it was a wonderful experience, though the author's reluctance to use contractions makes for an oddly formal sound. No matter - this is highly recommended to anyone looking for a great time - a fine and fun memoir of a unique American boyhood.

[Heidi Slowinski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Straus’s memoir opens in 1953 when, at the age of 10, his parents decide to take him out of public school and transfer him to Yeshiva, along with his younger brother. After enduring Anti-Semitism in public school, his community, and the Boy Scouts, Straus finds himself in a caring and nurturing environment where students fight with words rather than fisticuffs. While still faced with abuse at home from an unstable mother, Straus’s life turns an important corner onto a better path.
Straus is a gifted storyteller, presenting a very honest look at a two-year period that would shape the rest of his life. While many of the themes in this book are very serious, Straus manages to inject humor into his writing, creating a lightness that is needed at times.

While writing from a uniquely Jewish perspective, his story carries a universally relatable thread that applies to many immigrant stories that will appeal to any reader. This is definitely one not to be missed.

I’d like to thank Stuart Schnee for the free copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.