Hey Malarek!

Book excerpt: Victor Malarek is known to most Canadians as a tough investigative journalist who is willing to delve into stories revealing the worst side of human nature. His previous books investigate the clients of prostitutes, and the women who break the hearts of Canadians whom they marry only to gain citizenship. In this classic book, Malarek turns his investigative talent on his own past. He has written the story of how he grew up as a street kid in Montreal, caught up in the world of boys' homes, social workers, probation officers, and petty crime. Malarek was only ten when Children's Aid took him and his two brothers away from his family to an institution for boys. He was seventeen when an unusual judge chose to give him a second chance. Through that lucky break--and a lot of hard work--Victor Malarek was able to give his life a different direction. But for a long time it was touch and go, as this compelling book makes very clear. Hey Malarek! is as fresh and relevant today as it was when it was first written. In the epilogue to this new edition, Victor Malarek muses on how he managed to find a different path for his life, despite having all the cards stacked against him, and reflects on what his story means for other kids--and for the world of social workers, police officers, and others who deal with Canada's most disadvantaged youth.