How does someone survive childhood in a cramped Cape Cod with ten siblings, a father who could intimidate a grizzly, and a mother with a dangerously sharp sense of humor? Author Joe Brizek answers that question in his riotous new memoir, “A Catholic Kid from a Jewish Neighborhood, Snapshots of a Jersey Childhood” to be released on Amazon on March 26.
Set against the backdrop of the 1960s and ’70s, Brizek’s story is a “cultural exchange program” he never signed up for. Navigating life as a Catholic kid in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood, he balances the chaos of a sibling swarm large enough to field a football team with the daily tightrope walk of faith, fear, and adolescence.
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Told through a series of vivid, youth-tinted snapshots, the memoir captures the swings from hilarity to heartbreak. Brizek wanders the wilderness of juvenile insecurity, ultimately finding his footing before stumbling across the high school graduation finish line.
“If you’ve ever been part of a big family or survived adolescence with your sanity intact, this book is the best family reunion you never knew you needed,” says Brizek.
Joe Brizek’s debut memoir offers a nostalgic yet honest look at the neighborhoods and families that shape us.
