"Even if it was only this one last day, it was as if time stood still, the clock broken years earlier. This was our history, our family and identity. The lucky few among us had been bestowed another round, another chance. Our parting shots insinuated insults to those who listened through unknowing ears, but words of love from brothers of the heart."

Set in the shady world of illegal gambling and based on true events spanning three decades, "Keepers of the Book" presents an insightful, behind-the-scenes memoir of lifelong friends caught up in a high-stakes bookie operation gone awry.

One...