Eye from the Edge A Memoir of West Oakland, California

Eye from the Edge A Memoir of West Oakland, California by Ruben Llamas. Hardcover edition. ISBN: 9781885401601.

Eye from the Edge brings you to an American melting pot with sizzle and swing. In the wartime 1940s the Oakland Port waved farewell to soldiers and sailors and welcomed laborers for the rail yards and the shipyards located at the edge of our North American continent. Streetcars, motorcycles, city slickers and shoppers mix with music and aromas while a group of boys cycle along the edge of the San Francisco Bay. Read about this multiculture-rich neighborhood; dance the salsa and swing; meet Pedro infante, or Guadalupe Carlos in La Ideal Music Shop on Seventh St. See the big hearts of boxers like Carl Bobo Olson and the early church leaders like Father Philipps at St. Marys. Read what Ruben hears in his dads barbershop while he shines shoes. Follow him through a retail business career and a successful marriage (which his wife Anita helps describe). Read of music that brings the young people together, no matter their heritage. Picture the Mexican territory that Rubens parents left during troubles of 1910 and Pancho Villa. Follow their journey across the border with their documents in their hands. Admire their enduring spirit with La Ideal Music Shop and hear the tales of this great melting pot. If you grew up in the SF Bay Area, let yourself go nostalgic --enjoy this easy to read life story, take the A Train from Oakland to Laffin Sal across the bay through the City on the Pacific Ocean. Laugh at the antics of the young teenagers and marvel at Rubens motivation and success, marrying and working after high school and learning on the job. Remember your own journey, your own people. See how working hard ties in with lively music and sports, and family. Enjoy the read!