As crazy as the holiday season can be, I can't deny that I can always rely on one thing: I will receive several new books for Christmas,
and they will be my favorite gifts.
A book is always a great gift, and I had a chance to read some great ones this year. One of the best is set right here in
Lower Bucks County, and it will serve as a gift for many of my friends and family.
I've mentioned many times in this space my affinity for Bristol and its outstanding sense of history, cultural diversity and
familial atmosphere. These aspects are beautifully captured in Bristol resident Bill Pezza's thought-provoking and inspiring
debut novel, “Anna's Boys.”
Pezza, a history teacher at Lower Moreland High School and his wife Karen, principal at St. Mark's in Bristol, oversea a family
of teachers in son Greg and daughter Leighann. Pezza's love of history proves manifest in his novel as he traces the lives of a
group of Bristol boys who embrace their country and each other while keeping a home base at the house of their friend, Johnny.
Local readers will delight in the descriptions of the great Morrisville-Bristol Thanksgiving Day football rivalry and the affectionate
description of Bucks County and its great beauty.
However, the best part about “Anna's Boys” is that its story is extremely relevant to any reader who enjoys the camaraderie
that develops between friends and the unifying or divisive effect that world events can have on these friendships. The book is
a must read for boomers, but I think it is even more relevant for high school-aged readers.
There is no question that the youthful generations of the 1960s and now are both faced with the reality of war and its long-term
impact on America's future. Earlier this year, former President Bill Clinton visited Bristol to stump for Patrick Murphy. This echoed a
scene from “Anna's Boys,” where the boys glimpsed a campaigning John F. Kennedy at the Levittown Shopping Center.
This brush with greatness inspired this group of boys, and the scene of them playing hooky to attend Kennedy's funeral is classic not
only for its lack of cynicism but for its proof that a great leader can inspire the great swathe of eclectic ethnicity's that helped build America.
I loved how Pezza traces the lives of these boys from high school to Vietnam and all the way up to the present day. The boys in this
novel were the progeny of the men and women who guided us through the horror and challenge of World War II. They held fast to a
belief of what America was and what it should be.
I'll be honest in admitting that my generation has lazily suckled on the surplus of milk left by the greatest generation. I belong
to a generation that eagerly takes an axe to the edifices of morality, idealism and unselfishness.
“Anna's Boys” shows the strength of these foundations and will remind any reader that friendship and loyalty are not just indigenous
to Bristol. Although I can't deny they can thrive on a winter walk down Radcliffe Street.
-Frank Sciolla
Varsity Boys Basketball Coach
Pennsbury High School
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