The Crossing Guard

Eight years ago, Mary and Freddy Gale's young daughter was killed by a drunk driver on her way home from school. The driver, a young man named John Booth, was sentenced to eight years in prison. Unable to absolve their own guilt, the Gale's marriage dissolves and Mary takes their two remaining children away from Freddy.

Quenching his thirst for vengeance with alcohol, Freddy Gale waits for John Booth's release, planning his revenge. He becomes a man obsessed. On the day of John Booth's release, with his soul howling in agony, he is ready.

John Booth, at once strengthened and weakened by his prison experiences, also waits. Still seeking a final penance, John Booth endures his own agonies until the day he gets a gun to reclaim his life.

It is not surprising that the characters of this novel have the voices from a finely tuned play; the author wrote Streamers, Sticks and Bones, and Hurlyburly, each an exploration of the often violent conflicts in the American psyche. The Crossing Guard is based on the Miramax film written and directed by Sean Penn and starring Jack Nicholson, David Morse, and Angelica Huston.

A fast-paced story of two men in conflict, by the Tony and Obie Award-winning author of Sticks and Bones and The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel. A bitter father plots vengeance against the drunk driver who killed his young daughter after the man is released from prison. The upcoming film stars Jack Nicholson and Anjelica Huston and is directed by Sean Penn.

David Rabe’s drama has been honored by the Obie Awards, Variety, the Drama Desk Awards, the New York Drama Critics’ Society, and the Outer Critics’ Circle. He has won a Tony Award and has received the Hull Wariner Award for playwriting three times. Born in Iowa, he received a BA from Loras College and an MA from the Graduate School of Drama at Villanova University. He began his writing career as a journalist and has also written several screenplays. He lives in Connecticut.