New City by Patrick Girondi
What's It About?
Follow the misadventures of a poverty-stricken neighborhood in the South Side of Chicago as one man tries to help neighbors and loved ones stay above the rising tide of avarice that threatens to sweep indigent residents from their homes and into the gutter.From accomplished author, musician and modern-day Renaissance man Patrick Girondi, New City (Skyhorse) tells a compelling story of courage and resilience from a poverty-stricken neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago.
Reminiscent of John Steinbeck’s classic novel Of Mice and Men, this modern tale follows the misadventures of lifetime resident Danny Nowak as he tries to help neighbors and loved ones stay above the rising tide of avarice that threatens to sweep indigent residents from their homes and into the gutter. Girondi draws heavily from his own experience growing up in the troubled neighborhood to weave a story that exposes the complex manipulations and motivations of the wealthy as they continually oppress the poor.
Battling Injustice
“New Capitalism” is at the heart of the socioeconomic decay experienced in New City and other urban centers around the country. This term, used to describe the political and commercial machinations of the wealthy to benefit from poverty, is explained in depth during the course of the book, without ever slowing the pace of the story. The author incorporates brief scenes of dialogue to elucidate the dark side of urban politics.
In one instance, Danny goes to court to help an elderly couple appeal crippling fines on their property. He enlists the help of a lawyer, who tells it straight.
They’re being targeted by the new administration. The city’s trying to push them out. It’s as simple as that … Look, they ticket the people who can’t afford to pay, so they lose their homes. The city takes them over. It’s called progress, gentrification, urban development.
While sympathetic to the plight, the lawyer can’t do much to help fight this injustice. Danny, along with a few other allies from the neighborhood, is compelled to help pay the fines so that the couple won’t lose their home.
Hope is a central theme of this novel; a gritty, glassy-eyed variety of hope that keeps the destitute from finally succumbing to a system that would like to wipe them out. Danny inspires the residents of his deteriorating block to hold on a little longer by providing them with illegal electricity, helping them to contest unfair fines and penalties, and giving them shelter in times of need.
Hope and Brotherhood
Danny is by no means a saint, but he manages to impart lessons of “street wisdom” throughout the book. He encourages those around him to avoid the things that can tear a life apart: drugs, violence, prostitution and politicians. When a young black man, Moses, arrives on his doorstep after losing his mother, Danny gives him a home; quickly realizing that the man’s developmental challenges will make him a more permanent resident, dependent on Danny’s care and guidance. A precocious eight-year-old neighbor remarks at the size of the imposing Moses, calling him Mountain, and the young man quickly adopts the new moniker.
As Danny and the rest of the block face rising adversity, he encourages Mountain to hold onto hope for something better. He promises the young man that they can escape the problems of the city to a better life in Greencastle, a town in the neighboring state of Indiana. An acquaintance promises a small parcel of land if they can just raise ten thousand dollars to purchase it. The thought of a brighter and more peaceful place looms large in Mountain’s mind; he continually fears that each mistake or misdeed jeopardizes his chance to ever get there with Danny.
Mountain’s constant questions to Danny bring to mind the characters of Lennie Small and George Milton in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men:
When we moving to Greencastle Indiana? You’re bringing me along to feed the chicks?
Engaging Story
These questions serve as a major propulsive force in the novel and will cause readers to feel an emotional connection with the characters. Will Danny and Mountain ever make it to Greencastle, despite the odds stacked against them? Or will they be the next victims of a system carefully designed to crush people like them and profit from the destruction?
New City: A Story About Race-Baiting and Hope on the South Side of Chicago mingles fiction with lived experience of the author to convey an important and powerful message. Patrick Girondi’s skill as a writer is demonstrated in his ability to bend the horrible reality of poverty into a story that is approachable and engaging. New City introduces complex but very likable characters and can also help readers understand the forces of oppression that disproportionately affect the lower class.
About Patrick Girondi:
Patrick Girondi, originally from the South Side of Chicago, is an Italian and American singer-songwriter, author, and founder of San Rocco Therapeutics, a gene therapy company focused on bringing a safe and accessible cure to Sickle Cell Disease and Thalassemia patients. Girondi has released seven music albums and Skyhorse published his Wall Street Journal #1 bestseller Flight of the Rondone and New City.
