Historical Fiction
Date Published: 07-01-2025
Publisher: Sunbury Press, Inc.
Whiz Kid is a powerful coming-of-age novel set in 1950 Philadelphia,
where Jewish Navy veteran Ben Green faces impossible choices.
Pressured by his pregnant wife to finish his novel or take a secure job at a
prestigious ad agency, Ben must also navigate the era’s class divisions
and antisemitism. His best friend’s elite world clashes with his
working-class South Philly roots and Jewish identity.
Temptation, ambition, and loyalty collide—especially when Ilene, a
captivating classmate, threatens to unravel his carefully balanced life. As
the Phillies’ Whiz Kids chase a pennant, Ben’s own reckoning
builds to a climax, culminating in a surprising decision that redefines his
future.
Co-written with David S. Burcat, Joel Burcat’s late father, Whiz Kid is
a deeply American story of resilience, legacy, and the true cost of following
one’s heart.
About the Author
Joel Burcat is a novelist and retired lawyer living in Harrisburg, Pa.
His previous novels, Reap the Wind, Drink to Every Beast, Amid Rage, and
Strange Fire have been award-winning thrillers. He is a Gold Medal Winner from
Readers’ Favorite, a Finalist of the Next Gen Indie Book Awards, and a
winner of the PennWriters Annual Writing Contest. Strange Fire was a Kirkus
Reviews Best Book of the Week.
David S. Burcat was a Navy corpsman in World War II, a graduate of University
of Pennsylvania (English Literature and Dentistry), and a proud son of Camden
NJ and his adopted town of Philadelphia. He worked in advertising in the 1950s
before returning to Penn to study dentistry. He wrote Match Point, the novella
within the novel, in about 1950. He died in 1998. Whiz Kid- A Novel is his
first published book. Dave was the father of co-author, Joel Burcat.
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