“Childhood trauma never goes away. It’s like a disability or injury that partially—and sometimes totally—controls you, awake and asleep.”

Jules and Leon Silver attend school, play sports, are Boy Scouts, and they often come home to an empty refrigerator and a mother who cannot pull herself from bed. On the outside, they may seem like everyday middle-class boys. Inside each of them, a dark history is being written that will haunt them for the rest of their lives. In his debut novel, THE BROTHERS SILVER (Owl Canyon Press, ISBN: 978-1-952085-07-9, June 15th, 2021, Original Trade Paperback, $19.95) Marc Jampole tells a story of brothers, their bond, and their struggles and triumphs.

It is the early 1960s and Jules and Leon bounce back-and-forth between their parents, living with their father when their mother is institutionalized because of suicide attempts. As they grow into manhood, one takes to the road and rebellion, while the other looks for security in a committed relationship and work. Escaping the demons from the past is not a simple task, however, and these two highly intelligent young men find disarray, shame, pain, and heartache at every turn. Like many adults who experience emotional trauma as kids, Jules and Leon are plagued with combatting emotions—pride, guilt, shame, and anger—with no place to release their pain, except on themselves.

Marc Jampole has incorporated autobiographical elements in THE BROTHERS SILVER, making his rendering of their experiences harrowingly authentic. As a poet and artist, Jampole has written a masterful novel about love, tragedy, and hope, with complex characters and original voices chosen with precision and purpose.  

About the Author:

Marc Jampole wrote Music from Words (Bellday Books, 2007) and Cubist States of Mind/Not the Cruelest Month (Poet’s Haven Press, 2017). His poems and short stories have appeared in many journals and anthologies. About 1,800 freelance articles he has written have also been published. A former television news reporter and public relations executive, Marc writes the OpEdge blog, which appears on the websites of three national publications. He is past president of the board of Jewish Currents, a national magazine of politics and arts. He and his wife live in New York City.

THE BROTHERS SILVER: A Novel
By Marc Jampole
Owl Canyon Press
ISBN: 978-1-952085-07-9
Publication Date: 6/15/2021
Price: $19.95
Original Trade Paperback
296 pages