About the Author
After serving in the Armed Forces During World War II, Mark Harris worked as a journalist in New York City, St. Louis, and Chicago before enrolling at the University of Denver, from which he received a Master's degree in 1951. He obtained a PhD in American Studies from the University of Minnesota in 1956 and went on to teach at several universities, eventually settling at Arizona State, where he was a professor of English and taught in the creative writing program from 1980 to 2001.

About this Book
Set in Mount Vernon, New York, in the 1920s and 1930s, this is the story of two brothers, both bright and handsome--Speed and the narrator. Of the two, Speed is brighter, more handsome, a better athlete, and a more generous human being. Unfortunately, Speed has a terrible stutter that negates his value in the eyes of many. Speed finds salvation of sorts in his dream of owning a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. While the narrator loves Speed, he is also jealous of him. He senses that if Speed talked normally, he--the narrator--would be seen as the lesser of the two. After Speed disappears, the narrator spends decades missing him and searching for him.