Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea - Softcover

Carter, André Lewis

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1617758779 ISBN 13: 9781617758775

Publisher: Kaylie Jones Books, 2022

Synopsis

In the early 1970s, César Alvarez enlists in the navy to escape a life of crime; while the decision saves him from the streets, it also lands him amid volatile racial tensions at a crucial moment in US history.

"Skillfully blending his fictional hero's coming-of-age story with a real-life racial confrontation aboard ship, Carter's tale is a winning combination of military procedural, suspense, and Black history."
--Booklist, STARRED Review.

"André Lewis Carter weaves a riveting tale about a side of the US Navy we seldom see. Tone-perfect delivery and an inarguably authentic voice mark the debut of a powerful new talent."
--David Poyer, author of Violent Peace .

The Vietnam War is raging, the US Navy has only recently begun the process of integration, and the country is reeling from racial turmoil and unrest. So why does César, a street-tough kid of Afro-Cuban descent, enlist in the navy? He is on the run from a life of crime and from Mr. Mike, a charismatic, sociopathic gangster who was once a mentor but has now turned on him..

Escaping into a navy wrestling with its history of racism and sexism, César soon sees the absurdity of certain prejudices that seem as old as the US Armed Forces. When he is deployed aboard the USS Kitty Hawk, racial tensions are high and are moving quickly toward violence. Through it all, César's ever-growing sense of honour and self-worth force him to make moral decisions he never knew he was capable of. It's a fortitude he will desperately need.

About this title

About the Author

André Lewis Carter is a retired navy veteran who writes fiction, essays, and plays in the urban sprawl of Portland, Oregon. Carter's one-act play, Reaction, was staged at the Last Frontier Theatre Conference in Valdez, Alaska. He holds an MA in fiction writing and an MFA in creative writing from Wilkes University, where he was a Beverly Blakeslee Hiscox Scholar. He is married to a very patient woman who occasionally tells dirty jokes. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea is his debut novel.

Edition details

• Publisher: Kaylie Jones Books
• Publication date: 2022
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1617758779
• ISBN 13: 9781617758775
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 336