Funny Boys is set in a time when New York was run by the mob. Its format is the classic heroic romance; boy meets girl who is in need of rescuing and proceeds to do so. What are not so stereotypical though are the main characters' flaws and weaknesses which make them weaklings in comparison to those around them and yet who find the courage, strength, wisdom and luck to escape their situation.

Mutzie Feder, a naive young girl, is courted by what appears to be a nice young man. In reality he is a hit man for the mob. Gradually she finds herself immersed into a lifestyle that is far from the ideal fantasy she thought as her boyfriend prepares to discard her into an unwanted life of prostitution.

Mickey Fine is a young Jewish boy who is a gifted comedian and is hired to be a "Tumler', host and entertainer of a hotel casino for the mob. His past catches up with him when he comes face to face with the man he encountered some years before who beat him and his father up when his father had not paid his loan on time. The enforcer is friendly towards him and says, "Hey no hard feelings, business is business".

Gradually Mutzie comes to realize her boyfriend is a murderer and both her and Mickey get wind of an upcoming hit and hide themselves where they can witness it. During the scene of the execution another man is involved in his first hit, who finds it harder to take a life then he thought. He has it explained to him that the target is no longer considered to be a live person, but rather an impersonal piece of garbage that needs disposing of.

The book is a good window into the reality of how people get caught up into and trapped into a life of crime, and especially young girls and perhaps even boys into a life of drugs and prostitution. I personally find it is easy to judge those who live that type of lifestyle. Yet the reality is that many are like the characters in this book who become groomed and trapped into it against their will with no other choice but to do what they do.

As Christians, we too are flawed and often consider ourselves weak. Yet we are commanded to be courageous and strong with the backing of God being for us and not against us. I believe we need to consider how we can practically help those who live around us escape from the lives they live by getting alongside them and sharing the Gospel in both word and deed.