The Willow Tree (novel)

The Willow Tree is a novel written by Hubert Selby, Jr. and was published in 1998. This novel was written 20 years after Selby's last novel Requiem for a Dream was published.

Plot summary

The protagonist is a fifteen year old African American boy named Bobby who lives in an apartment in South Bronx with his mother and siblings. Despite his young age Bobby has intelligence that is advanced to most of the people around him. Bobby's Hispanic girlfriend Maria often spend time together and have plans for the upcoming summer. Bobby and Maria's lives are shattered when a vicious Hispanic street gang attack Bobby and Maria while the two were walking to school. Bobby and Maria were severely beaten and Maria is sent to the hospital suffering from near-fatal wounds. After Bobby leaves the hospital after visiting Maria, he meets an old holocaust survivor named Moishe and an unlikely friendship between Bobby and Moishe begins. At the end of the novel we hear Moishe talking about his tragic story while he was in a concentration camp, while Bobby tells Moishe what has happened to him and Maria . Bobby states that deep in his mind, he still has a desperate need for revenge.

Release details

• Paperback - ISBN 978-0714531397, published in 1998 by Marion Boyars Publishers