0 (13) Family Saga: FALLING UP THE STAIRS

TITLE: Falling Up The Stairs
GENRE: Family Saga

All Joey wants is to be loved. When the five-year-old and his six siblings are scattered in foster homes and orphanages by an alcoholic mother during World War ll, they suffer a life of unthinkable cruelty and neglect in "the system."

Joey finds that the road to securing his dream for happiness will take well over three decades and is fraught with many challenging obstacles in life, including hypocrisy, larceny, gross fabrication and unforgettable heartache.

It was unusual for a car to be sitting in front of the house, especially when your family lived on a side street. Very few rich people drove by, and when they did, Joey stared at them until they were out of sight. It was a special event, indeed, for a boy whose family had no car. Most automobiles in the town were black and had an ominous look, especially the sedans. He was fascinated with the one parked very close to his front porch. We’ve got company, he thought.

He spotted the car from a block away after turning the corner on his way home from school. Moping along, he was taking his time, but began to sprint into the April wind, his heart pounded as if there were a bass drum inside his chest by the time he reached the front door.


The house was as quiet as an early Sunday morning. Joey kicked off his shoes, wrestled out of his jacket, and tossed it on a chair in the living room before rushing into the dining room. A woman sat at the table with his mother, Alice, his Grandma Lillian, and sister, Beth.

Joey had never seen the woman before.

Coffee cups sat in front of the ladies. The dining room window was half open, and the curtains fluttered with the breeze. The tick-tock of his grandmother’s favorite clock seemed loud in the silence of the room. They all eyed Joey when he made his out-of-breath entrance,