"To me Americans are Americans whether they are young, old, poor or rich or black or white."
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A Badge & A Dream by John M. Loria Trafford Publishing
book review by John E. Roper
Racial equality issues have long served as hot topics in the American media. The infamous Boston bus riots of the 1970s protesting forced desegregation of the public schools was recently made into a documentary and is part of a year-long study by a Boston advocacy group on those turbulent times. Loria takes this revisitation of one of the more violent civil protests in Massachusetts' history one step further by making it the backdrop for his latest novel.
John L. Murphy is a fifth grade dropout from Arizona whose life completely changes when his father, an Irish immigrant, dies without fulfilling his dream of being a professor at Harvard University. The 19-year-old vows to take on his father's dream as his own, despite having a limited education, but first must provide for his three younger siblings. However, despite his best efforts the children are placed in an orphanage. After some floundering with odd jobs, John joins the army and is sent to Vietnam. On the battlefield he learns valuable lessons in personal courage and integrity, lessons that in turn serve him well on his return to the States and in his dual roles as an adult education teacher and a Boston policeman. The fires of the city's turmoil refine his character and vision even further, serving as stepping stones to achieving his ultimate career goal.
Although the novel contains many style errors that weaken the book's intended power, Loria writes with passion and purpose, giving his character the redeeming qualities of his personal hero, Audie Murphy.