Days and Deeds: A Hundred Years Ago (1906)

At nine, Frankie Franzisi is caught in the middle, as three people are shot to death in his Newark neighborhood. The newspaper report mentions that he is half Jewish, resulting in his confrontation with Vinnie Terrabono, son of mob boss Vincenzo. This leads to his exile to Brooklyn for four years, during which, Frankie discovers that his Uncle Bennie works for a Jewish gangster named Manny Moskowitz. Frankie runs errands for Manny and is haunted by the deaths he has witnessed. Returning to Newark at thirteen, Frankie graduates high school, then spends a year traveling with Manny before joining the Navy. While serving in Japan, he falls in love with Kimiko. After witnessing two more deaths, he becomes a writer in New York City, hoping to escape the seemingly endless repercussions of his violent childhood, even if it is the last thing he will ever do, and it may well be just that!