Stealing Tomatoes Synopsis Ernesto Lombardi loves his backyard tomato garden. He plants it, nurtures it, and fiercely protects it against neighborhood kids who steal tomatoes for sport. When a twist of fate unites "Old Man" Lombardi and Johnny Marzo, the young leader of the mischievous neighborhood gang, the boy and the old man form a powerful bond. Lombardi, a World War II paratrooper, teaches the boy valuable lessons about life, love, and the unyielding defense of one's family and country. Johnny and his friends come of age in small-town America in the 1980s and struggle to learn who they are and what they value. Over the next two decades, the boys evolve into men, driven by duty and bolstered by the women they love. Together they must preserve their relationships while being swept up in the most critical security issue of our time. Stealing Tomatoes is a powerful cross-generational story in which survivors of eras gone by pass the torch to a new generation of Americans faced with a different kind of conflict. They find themselves confronted with a diabolical and elusive enemy that knows no national boundary and uses unspeakable tactics. Set in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Stealing Tomatoes is a sweeping and provocative story of love and conflict with engaging characters whose experiences will cause readers to laugh, cry, and, most of all, think.