FRED II Timeless Tenant Tales

Dear readers,

You may remember me from my original novel FRED: Buffalo Building of Dreams. I'm the same four-story building, now over a century old located on Buffalo's West Side. I'm also an inanimate object, personified in a manner I can't explain; nevertheless, I'm aware of all that happens within my brick exterior. The windows are my eyes and the walls are my ears.

I've seen and heard thousands of conversations within my skin of bricks. I may not have a soul, but in an indefinable way, I do have a heart. In a very real sense, my tenants have become my children. Together, they are my family. I try to stay uninvolved in their squabbles, major or minor; however, when I hear something that particularly upsets me, I make myself heard by rattling my plumbing, and popping and snapping my floorboards and internal timbers like old bones.

I urge you now to take a trip with me back to the 1930s and 1940s. Wander through my corridors and feel the haunting grip of nostalgia capture your imagination. See the images of yesteryear, and whiff the scent of past decades soaked deep within my plaster walls. Listen to my stories, some heart-wrenching, others uplifting, but all of them reflections of the times and the kind of people who lived through them.

"No, no!" Mrs. Rosellini cried, storming from one side of the room to the other, wringing her hands, clasping them together and throwing them up in the air. "Oh, Gezu Cristo, why, why, why?"

...the crowd parted as Huggs broke into a loping run, lunged between them and hurled his body with a sickening thud against Catherine's door. He bounced off and did it again and again until the frame cracked and the door swung open hanging on a single hinge.

Holding hands, they strolled alongside the Niagara River, its turbulent waters swirling past in a frenzied torrent of fury. Sarah saw the river as a parallel to her own emotional turmoil.

"You can waste your time wallowing in despair or capture the moment in life that's waiting to be appreciated. Seize the moment while you can, Sarah."

Gustav held the gun in his hand behind the door. With the other hand, he turned the catch and knob, opened the door a crack and peeked out.

"I had to marry her, get it? It's one of them things that happen. You know what I'm talking about?" he asked, his voice husky, his eyes blurry.

About the Authors:

James A. Costa is a retired West Seneca, New York, high school English teacher, and the author of a number of novels, including The Boy Who Made Music; Victim; Portal in Time; and Murder on Mulberry Street.

Frances R. Schmidt is a retired D'Youville University administrator and author of an historical novel: Fred: Buffalo Building of Dreams; Forever Violet, and two job search books. In 2021 NYC Big Book award recognized Fred: Buffalo Building of Dreams as a Distinguished Favorite for the category of historical fiction. In 2022 the Independent Press award recognized Fred: Buffalo Building of Dreams as a Distinguished Favorite in the category historical fiction.

In 2023 the authors collaborated on Forever Violet, a novel honoring the life and legacy of Frances' mother, Lillie R. Sharon. In 2024 the novel won a NYC Big Book award as a distinguished favorite in the category of Young Adult Fiction.

In 2024 the authors collaborated on Accidental Virgin, a Romance novel, that was published in 2025.

Additional information is available on her website: https://francesrschmidt.com