Nicholas Nigro: 2 books

The last thing in the world that fifteen-year-old Matt “Bean” Casale wants is to be on Tony Testa’s hit list. A bully of renown and heft—he is a real bruiser-boy—Testa and his entourage invariably mean business on the streets of Kingsbridge in the Bronx. With “The DeTestables”—as they...

The year is 1978, a simpler snapshot in time, when New York City neighborhoods had both character and characters—lots of them in fact. At once gritty and charming, the Bronx’s Kingsbridge supplies the vivid backdrop for Matt “Bean” Casale and his pals, who unwittingly find themselves entangled...