Road to Bobby Joe and Other Stories

By Louis Berney

THE ROAD TO BOBBY JOE AND OTHER STORIES "PEOPLE IN EXTREME SITUATIONS OR AT THE BREAKING POINT." An ancient black escape artist; a Laotian busboy, driven to violence in a swank New Orleans restaurant;... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0151778701
• ISBN13: 9780151778706
• Release Date: January 1991
• Publisher: Harcourt
• Length: 182 Pages
• Weight: 0.86 lbs.

Customer Reviews

The Road to Bobby Joe and Other Stories

I have been teaching American Studies class with pieces from this book for years. "In The Weeds" is the one that gets the award for student favorite of the semester. Why? Because a little Laotian man by the name of Quong who is just trying to do his job at the restaurant one Saturday evening is misunderstood, undervalued, mistaken for another ethnic and religion; he is then taken advantage of by waiters who owe him tips, disregarded by patrons and let down by management and union until driven at last to the edge. I have used the piece in workshops for teaching with cultural relevance. Students also use it in diversity groups-- when studying humor--as well as bigotry, racism, prejudice and, just plainly, the human need to be understood. Quong has even brought a little subculture at our school. Out on the front sidewalk one afternoon one of my students began to proclaim his appreciation for the little guy when a boy from another class overheard us. "You know Quong?" he asked excitedly. "I, too, am a friend and a fan of Quong's." We laughed at the power of a story and I smiled that one favorite, passed on to another teacher in the hope of spreading truth and a legacy of love for reading, had accomplished its mission. It was a special time for that restaurant, for Quong and for those of us who know him.