Wonderland: A Tale of Hustling Hard and Breaking Even

A poignant memoir of growing up inside Boston's criminal underworld--and breaking free.

Nicole Treska was born to a family of gangsters. In the 1970s, during Boston's mob wars, her grandfather's diner was an unofficial headquarters for Whitey Bulger and other members of the Winter Hill Gang. Nicole's father was also an associate of the gang: there was talk that, before Nicole could walk, her stroller was used as a decoy to sell drugs. In 1985, her father too was arrested and tried--sentenced to two years in prison for federal drug trafficking.

Wanting to offer a better life to her children, Nicole's mother moved her and her sister out of Boston. As an adult, Nicole strove to separate herself from her past, establishing a career as a writer and professor in New York City. But when she learns her father's sister has passed away, she returns to her hometown and reunites with her dad--now stooped and struggling to walk on a bad knee. As she gets reacquainted with him and the old neighborhood, Nicole is forced to reconcile with her harrowing childhood and its lingering impact.

With gritty and gripping prose, Wonderland masterfully explores and elucidates the line between helping family and hurting ourselves.

Author: Nicole Treska
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Published: 07/09/2024
Pages: 224
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.7lbs
Size: 8.50h x 5.60w x 1.20d
ISBN: 9781668005040


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 05/15/2024
Publishers Weekly 05/27/2024
BookPage 07/01/2024

About the Author
Nicole Treska is the author of the debut memoir, Wonderland. Her short fiction has appeared in New York Tyrant Magazine, Epiphany Magazine, and Egress: New Openings in Literary Arts. Her interviews and reviews are up at Electric Literature, Guernica, The Millions, BOMB, The Rumpus, and then some. She lives in Harlem with her husband, James, and their three-legged dog, Nadine.