It's 1954 and the post-war growth of Los Angeles has slipped into recession. Carlos Rangel's two-chair barber shop has fallen on hard times, and he spends more time playing his saxophone than cutting hair. Enter personable Jack Niel, a confident apprentice barber with a flare for cutting hair and developing a clientele. Jack is smitten by Carlos' daughter Carmela at a local drive-in restaurant, and upon learning that her father owns a barber shop, he decides to solicit Carlos for a job. Over the next nine months, Jack t only helps to rehabilitate the business, he also gets engaged to Carmela, despite initial opposition from her mother, Teresa. This is the tale of honest hard-working people trying to overcome the challenges of everyday life. It is also a poignant story of reconciliation and cultural acceptance which remains timeless.
Jerome Arthur grew up in Los Angeles, California. He lived on the beach in Belmont Shore, a neighborhood in Long Beach, California, for nine years in the 1960s. He and his wife Janet moved to Santa Cruz, California in 1969. These three cities are the settings for his ten novels.