THE CHRISTMAS KID And Other Brooklyn Stories

Hamill's latest is a collection of love stories of a sort. First published as fiction in THE NEW YORK DAILY NEWS, these stories are easy to absorb and often fun--even enlightening. But behind each tale is a longing for times past, for chances missed and hardships endured. The overwhelming tone that rings through these stories is one of nostalgia for a place that long ago formed its inhabitants and, presumably, Hamill himself. Henry Leyva embraces the voices of Brooklyn wholeheartedly, sometimes going overboard with characters that sound more like caricatures but overall delivering a colorful and adept performance. The stories also can go too far to create the prototypical Brooklyn of legend, but the overall effect is worth a listen. L.B.F. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2013]