Kidder records Tony’s history as told by Tony to both Jim and Kidder himself. Tony grew up in the North End of Boston and witnessed domestic violence throughout his childhood as his father beat his mother. He saw murder by the time he was seven, and he and his brother tried to kill their father. After trying to kill himself at 15, Tony stayed in a mental hospital and had been diagnosed with a range of disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Kidder reports that much of what Tony describes of his childhood is true, though there are key inconsistencies. For example, Tony tells a story about being kidnapped and raped by a neighbor. Kidder finds such an instance documented around the time when and location where Tony grew up but describes Tony’s “nonchalance” in talking about such severe sexual assault. Kidder also states that many young boys from the North End experienced sexual assault at the hands of priests, but Tony feverishly denies that this ever happened to him.

Tony officially went to prison when he was 26 for “assault with intent to commit rape,” the victim being 17 at the time (124). Tony tells Jim and Kidder that the crime wasn’t sexual and instead a robbery.