A Hero Ain't Nothin But a Sandwich

by Alice Childress

Benjie can stop using heroin anytime he wants to. He just doesn't want to yet. Why would he want to give up something that makes him feel so good, so relaxed, so tuned-out? As Benjie sees it, there's nothing much to tune in for. School is a waste of time, and home life isn't much better. All Benjie wants is for someone to believe in him, for someone to believe that he's more than a thirteen-year-old junkie. Told from the perspectives of the people in his life-including his mother, stepfather, teachers, drug dealer, and best friend-this powerful story will draw you into Benjie's troubled world and force you to confront the uncertainty of his future.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, African American, School, Banned Books, Addiction

130 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Alice Childress (October 12, 1916 – August 14, 1994) was an American playwright, actor, and author.

She took odd jobs to pay for herself, including domestic worker, photo retoucher, assistant machinist, saleslady, and insurance agent. In 1939, she studied Drama in the American Negro Theatre (ANT), and performed there for 11 years. She acted in Abram Hill and John Silvera's On Strivers Row (1940), Theodore Brown's Natural Man (1941), and Philip Yordan's Anna Lucasta (1944). There she won acclaim as an actress in numerous other productions, and moved to Broadway with the transfer of ANT's hit comedy Anna Lucasta, which became the longest-running all-black play in Broadway history. Alice also became involved in social causes. She formed an off-broadway union for actors. Her first play, Florence, was produced off-Broadway in 1950.

Her next play, Just a Little Simple (1950), was adapted from the Langston Hughes' novel Simple Speaks His Mind. It was produced in Harlem at the Club Baron Theatre. Her next play, Gold Through the Trees (1952), gave her the distinction of being one of the first African-American women to have work professionally produced on the New York stage. Her next work, Wedding Band: A Love/Hate Story in Black and White, was completed in 1962. The setting of the show is South Carolina during World War I and deals with a forbidden interracial love affair. Due to the scandalous nature of the show and the stark realism it presented, it was impossible for Childress to get any theatre in New York to put it up. The show premiered at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and later in Chicago. It was not until 1972 that it played in New York at the New York Shakespeare Festival. It was later filmed and shown on TV, but many stations refused to play it.

In 1965, she was featured in the BBC presentation The Negro in the American Theatre. From 1966 to 1968, she was awarded as a scholar-in-residence by Harvard University at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study.

Alice Childress is also known for her literary works. Among these are Those Other People (1989) and A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich (1973). Also, she wrote a screenplay for the 1978 film based on A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich. Her 1979 novel A Short Walk was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Childress described her writing as trying to portray the have-nots in a have society. In conjunction with her composer husband, Nathan Woodard, she wrote a number of musical plays, including Sea Island Song and Young Martin Luther King.

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Jessie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, about a 13 year old addicted to heroin, told through his perspective, and the perspectives of his family, teachers, neighbours, etc. Despite being severely dated by the language of the 70’s, this book tells an extremely plausible narrative about how kids get hooked on drugs, about how communities are infiltrated by addiction due to, you guessed it, marginalization, policies, and disenfranchisement, and about how love is not enough. Early Black books for young people about our struggles. What an important thing to have, and I’m glad the tradition continues into modern day. I can’t believe the blurb from the NY Times on the cover calling it “entertaining”, but here we are. If you’re reading books for youth that are about real life and aren’t just festivals of hormones, check this one out, it’s a forerunner to the best of what we are seeing currently.

[Venessia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wowwwwwwwwwww a book penned in the 70s but still so relevant today.

Check out my review here:

https://bibliophileonabudget.wordpres...

[Rosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Album to listen to while reading: The Revolution Will Not Be Televised, by Gil Scott-Heron. Almost every song matches the themes and mood of this groundbreaking young adult novel. I’ll prove it.
“The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”—Benjie’s teacher Nigeria stirs up all his students with Black Nationalism and is trying to start that revolution, which drives Benjie’s other teacher Mr. Cohen crazy. Green Acres, Beverley Hillbillies, and Hooterville Junction will no longer be so damn relevant, and women will not care if Dick finally got down with Jane on Search for Tomorrow, because black people will be in the streets looking for a brighter day…the revolution will not be right back after a message about white lightning, white tornado, or white people…the revolution will be no reruns, brothers, the revolution will be live.
“Lady Day and John Coltrane”—Benjie’s stepfather Butler is a former saxophonist, and listening to Coltrane is a comfort in his life of working at a job he doesn’t like since he gave up on his dream. Ever feel kind of down and out, you don’t know just what to do?/Living all of your days in darkness, let the sun shine through./Ever feel that somehow, somewhere, you lost your way,/And if you don’t get help quick you won’t make it through the day?/Could you call on Lady Day,/Could you call on John Coltrane now,/‘Cause they’ll wash your troubles away.
“Home is Where the Hatred Is”—Stand as far away from me as you can and ask me why…Hang on to your rosary beads, close your eyes to watch me die…You keep saying, Kick it, quit it, kick it, quit it, God, but did you ever try? Benjie’s stealing drives Butler out of the apartment to the mantrap downstairs. Home is filled with pain, and it might not be such a bad idea if I never went home again.
“Save the Children”—For once, Nigeria and Mr. Cohen agree. Benjie’s drug habit has to be stopped. We’ve got to do something, yeah,/To save the children./Soon it will be their turn to save the world…If we know all we say we know about the problems,/Why can’t we do something to try and solve them?

[Evanston Public Library]

After reading a fascinating article on actress/author/playwright Alice Childress in the October 10 issue of The New Yorker, I decided to check out her young adult novel A Hero Ain't Nothin' but a Sandwich published in 1973. Although some of the language is dated, this is still a powerful and moving book about 13-year-old heroin addict Benjie trying to find his way in New York's Harlem. Written in short, alternating chapters from differing perspectives (Benjie's mother Rose, best friend Jimmie-Lee, school principal, several teachers, drug pusher, and stepfather) the book vividly captures Benjie's world of love and despair, tragedy and tenderness. Both realistic and unflinching, the book left me with a feeling of sadness, and a sense of hope, but no real answers.

The book was adapted into a film in 1978 starring Cicely Tyson and Paul Winfield.

Born in Charleston, South Carolina in 1916, Alice Childress moved to Harlem in 1925 and joined the American Negro Theater in 1941. She was the first African American woman to have a play professionally produced in New York, and one of the first African American women to direct an off-Broadway play. She was nominated for a Tony award as Best-Supporting Actress for her role in the 1944 production Anna Lucasta. A revival of her first full-length play Trouble in Mind was recently performed in Washington, DC to rave reviews. You can read an abstract of The New Yorker article here.

[Yinglin Chen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Benjie a 13 year old teenager, is having a bit of trouble admitting is issues. From smoking marijuana to injecting heroin, he keeps on saying he isn't addicted to any of the drugs. However, his mother and her boyfriend, Butler, constantly deals with Benjie stealing household items for drug money.

A book about teenage life in the 70's isn't necessarily the novel you thought it would be about. This book wasn't the best book if you don't pay attention to the headings and names of the chapters. Each chapter is written in a different character's point of view. From Benjie, to his stepfather and mother, the drug dealers and other various characters.

However, in this book Butler, Benjie's mother's boyfriend, never gives up and tries to help Benjie overcome his drug problem. He always believes in himself and believes in Benjie, while everyone avoids Benjie. From that point on, I realized that the only thing you actually need to do to succeed, is to believe that you can achieve.

[Robin Lyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book when I was 12 at a school book fair. I loved it because I had never read anything like it and had no concept or experience with the storyline. Many, many years later as I reread this book the shock value is gone. But I gave it 5 stars for the 12 year old me.

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the shifting narrators and the depth of each POV; each person's story helped me understand the circumstances that led up to and continued through Benjie's story. I liked the historical context--I have a sense for early 1970s NY now. This book is essentially about addiction and the devastation it causes in individuals and communities; and it's about the role of autonomy within family systems. The slang is something that takes getting used to, but I think this is a very valuable quick read for young adults.

[Chase Larson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sept, 16, 2014




This book has an interesting plot and I will tell you why. Ben starts to get addicted on drugs and his parents get worried. This starts alot of drama in the family. Ben isn’t worried about it at all even though he is being asked questions.

This book has a unique way of telling the story because each chapter has a diffrent point of view. In one chapter they could be using Bens point of view then the principals point of view on the matter of his drug abuse. It’s a very important part of the story knowing what the other person thinks.

The characters all have life like personalities. This keeps you even more interested because usally characters in fiction books don’t have the most real personality. All of them are trying to help in there own way but it starts more conflict. This story always keeps you on your toes trying to read what happens next faster.

All in all this story is very interesting and unique book that makes you read so read the book for hours.

[Candace Andrews · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book when I took a young adult fiction class in college, and it remains my favorite young adult novel. It concerns Benjie, a black teenager addicted to heroin and those who care about him. What I especially like about this novel is that each chapter is told in first person point of view by the different major characters so that the reader can see how each character views Benjie's problem differently—Benjie's teacher sees Benjie's addiction one way, his mother another, his step–father another, etc. Plus, the real hero of this story is a surprise!

[Reka Beezy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one was deep! The end has you wondering though…

[Cameron Lazo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Benjie has hit a low point at 13 years old, finding himself using heroin and turning away from nearly everybody in his life. Sure, he shoots up sometimes, but that doesn’t mean he’s addicted or a bad person, right? But everybody around him merely condemns him for it, and he even feels betrayed by friends are critical of him, and try to talk him off of it. The story is told from many different perspectives, giving insight into the daily struggle of each individual’s life, and how they situate themselves, closer or more peripherally, around Benjie. From the Principal who cannot wait for his retirement, to his grandma that wants nothing more than to be at church, to his mom who is trying to hang on to her son and her man, nobody really knows how to navigate the prevalent drug-pushing in their community, or how to be there for Benjie.

The story took me a while to get into, and had me initially confused when each different perspective didn’t seem very related. The different storylines variably built up backstory, contributed relative perspectives, and clearly illustrated important and relevant contextual information of the time period (late 60s, early 70s), particularly related to the rise of drug use and abuse, overt and systemic racism, and various cultural dynamics. Childress expertly crafts the voices, motivations, and stories of each character, helping us little by little to understand not only the complex dynamics of the world they live in, but why Benjie has begun to slip through the cracks. Nobody has it easy in this book, but it was heartening to see people coming together and trying, never giving up despite the cards they’ve been dealt.

[Meaghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was written in the early seventies and is pretty dated now, both in the attitudes of the characters and the way they talk. Modern-day high school kids may find it hard to relate to and I, a white girl from suburbia, found the Ebonics hard to understand.

However, the book definitely has its merits. I was impressed with the author's ability to create a multitude of narrators, none of them sounding too much like the other. The author also did an excellent job establishing the setting (which is why the book is so dated now) and the family love and friendship still shine. The ambiguous ending was well done, and those can be tricky. I would still recommend this for young adults, but in context -- perhaps in conjunction with other books set in the same period, or as part of a school unit covering civil rights and the black power movement of the sixties and seventies.

What you must understand is that this book is not really about drugs. Rather, it's about the affect Benjie's heroin addiction has on his family, his friends and his teachers. If you want to read about drugs, read Crank . (You should anyway; that's an awesome book.) If you want to read about the struggles of a working-class urban black family in the late sixties or seventies, read A Hero Ain't Nothin But a Sandwich.

[Timmy Cham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Benjie is 13 years old. He lives in a building with
ugly hallways and dangerous people. His relationships
are all sources of stress ("nerves"): His friend lectures
him; his mom interrogates him; his grandmother
bangs dishes in discontent with him; his stepfather
"jives" him with a lot of "pie-in-the-sky" optimism;
his teacher gives "jive-ass" speeches; the social-
workers "generalize" about him. This stress fuels Benjie's
drug-use (self-medication) of his "nerves" with heroin.
Benjie's heroin use (and stealing to support his habit), in
turn, inflicts stress upon his family, friends, etc. And round
and round goes the Stress Wheel...

This novel is a short, but insightful, portrait of addiction.
Though Benjie is only 13, his depression in his environment,
rationalizations for using, the difficulty of "kicking" the
habit are all sharply described. As is Benjie's loneliness:
I wish I had me one friend, one who dig me the most and don't
put anybody else ahead of me. Guess I'm in this sad world all by
myself. Nobody care, why should they if your own daddy run off?
...So I'm laying here learnin' how to expeck nothin.(page 74)

Nearly half a century has passed since this book was
published. And yet, in this age of the Opiate Crisis,
Childress' book is just as sharp and insightful as it
was in 1973.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book brings up many great points to discuss with teens in a book club or school setting. Issues include: teen drug abuse and addiction, race relations, the successes and failures of the civil rights movement, the education of urban African-American youth, family communication, etc. Unfortunately, this book was written for a teen audience in the early 1970s, and that causes a tremendous amount of dated-ness. The hip jive dialect bears little resemblance to the language used by urban teens (or anyone else) today, making a book clearly written for reluctant readers rather challenging and at times unintentionally humorous.

The ending is disappointingly unrealistic. The rest of the book feels extremely true, but the chase scene and quick-fix ending cheapen the characters and the plot as a whole. Still, there is a lot for readers of any age, race, and background to think about cunningly slipped into this very slim volume.

I give this book a 3.5, but if we were living in the 70's I'd give it a 4.5.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this book and I don't like this book. This is a re-read for me. The first time I read it I was about the same age as Benjie. I think I liked it more then. The alternating perspectives is what makes this book interesting. Through the various narrators eyes you get a great vision of what the community is like, but at the same time I don't feel as if I got to know my main character well enough. He remains elusive and shifty throughout the book. The vernacular used can be at sometimes tricky to understand, but once you get used to it the story flows. The ending is what drives me nuts, either give me a happy ending or a sad one, not leave it up for me to decide. It really makes you question your faith in humanity.

[Akilah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a little hard to get into because the first chapter is told in dialect, and I was tired when I started it. It's told in alternating POVs by everyone affected by Benjie's drug use and offers some interesting perspectives on family, race, and economic equality.

It's a slim volume but took me longer than I expected to read--probably because it took me a little while to figure out.

That ending is killer, for sure. Worth it just for that.

Read Harder 2016: Read a book originally published in the decade you were born

[Jolynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

The use of multiple narrators in this book -- the protagonist, the stepdad, the mom, the grandma, the white, Jewish schoolteacher, the African-American school teacher, the principal, the dealer, the best friend -- make it an incredibly thought-provoking read about a 13 year old boy struggling with heroin use. Published in the mid-70's, many of the issues raised in this book strike me as just as relevant today.

[Victoria Whipple · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story of Benjie, a young drug addict, told from various points of view. The reader hears from Benjie, as well as his mother, stepfather, grandmother, teacher, friends, dealer, principal, and neighbor. In telling the heart wrenching story of Benjie's spiral into addiction, Childress juxtaposes the systems that encourage addiction, and those that try to break the addiction--tying them all back to white systems that prey on Black Americans.

[Neil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Published back in 1973, ‘A Hero Ain’t Nothin but a Sandwich’ is a outstanding telling of Benjie Johnson, a 13 year old drug addict. Told in the creative voices of multiple characters, this short novel still holds up all these decades later. While each character is unique and interesting, Butler Craig is the most admirable.
Schools should include this Alice Childress novel as part of their English curriculum.

[Marty McFarty · Rating 5 out of 5]

an nice afternoon read-- not too quick though. i think readers like myself who are not familiar with aave will have to reread passages and take their time with the book. it was heartwarming to read about benjie and his family confronting their truths and shame.

[Chamaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heart wrenching

This book is about a 13 year old junkie. The story line could be today. This book should be required reading

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember seeing this title when I was in junior high. My librarian steered me away from it. Although I never read it, I always remembered it because of the title.

Flashforward many, many, many years and I see the title again. The book is much thinner than I remember. I decide to read it anyway to see if it might be of interest to my struggling readers.

It's a good story with ever-changing points of view. The problem is the language. There is no way that I could get away with having this on my shelves. Parents would gripe something awful even though the problems faced by the 13-year olds in the story are real, perhaps too real.

Students might be put off at first by the use of dialect. They may not understand all the slang at first either. I wonder if they'd understand all the Black Power references. But the (foul) language would intrigue them, as would the drug use. It's the kind of thing they dig, dig?

[Suebee · Rating 2 out of 5]

A controversial book because of its slang, street language and drug activity, I think this book is more suited for teens/adults. It's not a "children's book" just because there is a child character. The book is set in a tough NY neighborhood. Benjie is a 13-year-old boy who abuses drugs, and the book is told from his point of view, as well as his mother's, his mother's boyfriend (Butler Craig), his grandmother, the next door neighbor lady who wishes Butler were hers, the school principal, and teachers Mr. Cohen ("whitey" whose kids read remarkably well) and Nigeria Greene (who causes trouble with his activism). I think the book deals with historical political issues that kids today definitely wouldn't get, but it's a good "snapshot" of history.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I must've read this 20 times since I first discovered it in 5th grade. It covers a 13-yr-old's descent into heroin addiction from the p.o.v.s of the boy, his mother, his teachers, his former best friend, his dealer, and his stepfather--each chapter written in each character's own (seemingly effortlessly captured) voice. An absolute classic. Childress is masterful.

[Alexis Wray · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I especially like how it had all the perspectives in Benjis life telling the story of how heroin became apart of his life. The only part I didn't like was the ending, the ending was Butler just waiting for him to come home and hoping that he wasn't back on drugs. I just wish there would have been more of an ending!

[Tom Monahan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picked this book up randomly at the library to kill some time because it looked short. To my surprise, I was immediately enthralled. I devoured it pretty much in a day, and by the end, I said, "This was one of the best books I've ever read." I didn't expect this book to be incredible when I picked it up, but it was. Just goes to show: don't judge book by its cover.

[Nilsa · Rating 5 out of 5]

SUPER GOOD!!!!
if u r into the crazzy teenager books
this is 4 u

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slowly working my way through these classic YA novels. This one must have been eye-opening back in the day.

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Second to last book from TIME's list!

This is a hard book to rate. On the one hand, I loved all the POVs, and the kaleidoscopic story they create about Benjie, his family, and his addiction. I loved the brevity of the read, and how it easily captured and held my attention. I could see younger readers feeling similarly and thus enjoying the book more. I loved the newspaper clippings, etc., that Childress integrated into the story, and how the perspectives of the teachers and principal helped show how it's a community story.

On the other hand, I wish the resolution between Benjie and Butler hadn't been so rushed. I felt that it was a bit disingenuous how quickly they resolved their issues with one another, and made that final page just not as anxiety-inducing as I would have hoped. I also wanted more resolution with the rest of the community, but I guess we can't really have that if we keep the open-ended ending, so you win some you lose some there!

Reading this one really did make me think in a way I hadn't before about how all the books on this list would have been received at the time of publication by the general public. I thought it was interesting how much I was reminded of The Outsiders while reading this book, and yet how I hadn't even heard of it before the list, and how this was the hardest book to procure. It made me think a lot about books getting to the right people, and did this one? I really do hope so. It was a moving read.

[Carrie]

Yeah, I didn't have fun with this but I really wasn't supposed to sooo. ..