47TH STREET BLACK

Chicago's virulent South Side is home to a pair of troubled young black men in the '60s who quit school and join the mob in Ojikutu's gritty, robust debut. Though he is an outstanding athlete in high school, Morris "Mookie" King decides to drop out and hit the streets, along with best friend J.C. Rose. In an alley, they discover the decomposing corpse of murdered local thug "Johnny the Baptist," lift his gold jewelry and attempt to sell it in gangster Tommy Ricci's pawnshop. Seduced by Ricci's money and power, Mookie and J.C. sign up for a mob-style education, and soon they are assisting boss man Salvie in small "debt recovery" assignments. In alternating sections rife with hardcore slang, Mookie and J.C. recount their graduation to more serious tasks (including managing a refurbished nightclub cover operation). In no time, they are overseeing the entire South Side's mob activities. Money and power eventually drive the boys apart, and their differences become more evident. After they commit a sloppy murder, Mookie flees the scene and only J.C. is nabbed. Saddled with a lengthy jail sentence, J.C. has plenty of time to finish his GED and reconsider his lifelong friendship with Mookie. A tougher and wiser J.C. emerges from prison only to lock horns with Mookie, who is now primed to become a kingpin in the organization. Threats, bloodshed and murder are rife in this first novel, but Ojikutu keeps the mayhem tightly focused, offering up an accomplished and engaging story of gangster life on the South Side. Agent, Caroline Carney, Book Deals. (Jan.)