ELIZABETH, NJ — A native of Elizabeth, Kevin P. Brady has written a memoir dedicated to the city called “North End Boy: Innocence and Experience Amid the Seven Wonders of Elizabeth, New Jersey.”
A fast-paced story about seven friends coming of age in Elizabeth in the 1970s, the book features Elizabeth’s “seven wonders” and the roles they played in the city’s rich history. Born to parents who came to the United States from Ireland after World War II, Brady was born at what was then St. Elizabeth Hospital. His family lived on West Grand Street in Elizabeth until he was 2, when they moved to the city’s North End.
“‘North End Boy’ is a memoir set in Elizabeth in the summer of 1978,” Brady said on Monday, Jan. 3. “It’s a story of seven friends in their early 20s who, over a 36-hour period, sort out their destiny against a backdrop of urban crime, abandoned factories and political corruption. These were my friends. ‘North End Boy’ is an intensely local book, but it is also a larger meditation on postwar America, as seen through the eyes of a young man with immigrant sensibilities and working-class roots. At least, that’s how it looked to me.
“Most of the action takes place in the North End of Elizabeth, a place that I know well,” he continued. “Why write about Elizabeth? Because it explains everything else. I have six grandchildren ages 4 and under. I hope someday that they will read ‘North End Boy’ and get a sense of where they came from. The book is really a note to their future selves.”
Brady spoke about getting to record things the way he remembers them, and about the thrill he thinks local readers will experience when they recognize the city’s historical landmarks and places.
“‘North End Boy’ is a memoir, so I get to remember things the way that I want. That’s a rare luxury,” Brady said. “I remember the tight-knit ethnic neighborhoods of Elizabeth, the economic struggles of the families I knew, the violence and the churches that held it all together. I try to be faithful to the times and the people without too much romance.
“‘North End Boy’ is a local story. The places, times and characters will be familiar — in some cases, recognizable — to the reader,” he continued. “The book includes real-life characters, like Mayor Tom Dunn, mobster John Riggi and Father Ed Leahy of St. Benedict’s Prep School in Newark. Book proceeds are donated to St. Benedict’s, which is featured in ‘North End Boy.’”
Brady spoke of the “seven wonders” of Elizabeth featured in the book and of how he felt about this book being available for others to read.
“The seven wonders are Singer Sewing Machine (Manufacturing Co.), Bayway Refinery, Burry Biscuits factory, Newark airport, New Jersey Turnpike, Goethals Bridge and Union County Courthouse,” Brady said. “Each of the seven wonders is a character in itself and plays a role in the narrative.
“I hope that readers enjoy reading ‘North End Boy’ as much as I enjoyed writing it,” he continued. “I did quite a bit of research on the seven wonders of Elizabeth, especially Singer and the Bayway Refinery. Anyone who worked there or knew someone who worked there will enjoy that history.”
Maplewood native and former St. Benedict’s Prep student Peter Wilderotter is a longtime friend of Brady and a trustee of St. Benedict’s. Brady and his wife, Maureen, have generously supported the school through the years, and Wilderotter expressed his appreciation that the school is the beneficiary of the book’s proceeds.
“Even more important,” Wilderotter said on Monday, Jan. 3, “the book brings out the grit and greatness of our headmaster for 49 years, Father Edwin Leahy OSB. I attended Benedict’s in 1968, right after the Newark riots. One of my close friends at the time, Eddy Harrington, lived in Union Township. … It was through Eddy that I met Kevin, as he was part of a gang that played basketball, hung out in pubs — K Tavern, which is featured in the book — and general mischief-making.
“Though Kevin became an enormously successful businessman and entrepreneur in the world of taxes and finance, my earliest memory of him was his appreciation for great literature, particularly Shakespeare,” he continued. “We graduated in the early ’70s — a time of incredible unrest — and the angst of our surroundings was probably overlooked and certainly underappreciated. That unrest has somewhat followed us throughout our lifetimes, as we’ve all had great success in our careers, but the bond of youthful friendships endures.”
Wilderotter said he loved the book because it reached him in multiple ways.
“It’s consequential on a whole host of levels. It reminds us that there is a thin veneer to success and our surroundings. The seven wonders of Elizabeth are a treasure trove of memories, and revisiting them helps us absorb their meaning,” Wilderotter said. “The story is also a bit universal in that anyone who grew up in turbulent times around a city that was once great will relate and appreciate the stories. It’s also a tome about redemption and the spiritual side of our life, and our need to replenish the soul. The chapter on Father Ed is as good as anything I’ve ever heard from the pulpit. Mostly, what I love about the book is its authenticity. Henry Miller wrote: ‘I was born in the street and. … In the street you learn what human beings really are.’ This book delivers that in abundance. …
“We were quite a crew of friends that had so many ups and downs — we sat for hours in the K Tavern, killing our brain cells with tales that have taken on a life of their own,” he continued. “In the serendipity of life that surrounds us, St. Benedict’s has also incorporated the former Benedictine Academy in Elizabeth, where Kevin’s sisters went.
“Take a moment to reflect on what you’ve done, Kevin. This book is an homage to your (and Maureen’s) parents — people who were larger than life. Now, as a grandpa to an emerging new generation, make sure they incorporate the story and life lessons of ‘North End Boy’ into their annual rituals and traditions.”
Readers can learn more about ‘North End Boy’ at https://northendboy.com or purchase it at https://tinyurl.com/2p8nfsu8.
Photos Courtesy of Kevin P. Brady