Full disclosure: I have a story in this anthology.
It's hard to write funny well. It's hard to write grim well. Do both at the same time and you've got something.
Al's family moved from Long Island to Jacksonville, Florida, when he was in third grade, because of his stepfather's import business. Now he is thirteen and has begun to figure out exactly what is being imported.
But that's not his immediate problem. There are a couple of anti-Semetic rednecks in his class and when they hear about Passover (which the sensitive teacher helpfully describes as "Jewish Easter,") they decide to invite themselves forcefully to the seder. Let all who are hungry come and eat, right?
Sounds like a Manischewitz-fueled version of Key Largo. But what I loved about the story is not the suspense but the surprising choices the characters make (especially the grandmother). Al kept me guessing right up to the last paragraph.
More hardboiled than noir, but a fine piece of work.
