Here is one of the many positive reviews of my novel, Overtime: A Basketball Parable:
This is a poignant book. At first it seems like “Field of Dreams–Basketball.” Once you push past the initial parallels, the depth of this book comes through. Purgatory and accounting/atoning for past sins and mistakes (even well intentioned ones) gives this book a somber and reflective tone. The characters have depth and frailty that the author painstakingly constructs–there are only sinners here, no saints. There is also a mystery about the setting that the author does well to leave mysterious. This is not the book for a person looking for easy answers and a fairytale resolution. This book was clearly developed and written with great thought and feeling. A good book to read for the contemplative reader.
I really love this review. Do you know what “poignant” means? If you search out the origin of the word, you’ll find that it has its roots in “fragrance” or “bouquet.” I couldn’t have gotten a better compliment, for that is really what I intended to accomplish in writing this book. I wanted to give the reader a taste or the aroma of a time and place. The time is the second half of the twentieth century and the place is good old, small-town, middle-class America
This reviewer also sees that although basketball is the setting or vehicle for the story, it is not the story. The story is much deeper and more universal. Its a story of life and its mistakes and regrets and, finally, it is a story of repentance and redemption.
One of the reasons for this Amazon giveaway is to get the book into the hands of my readers all around the world. One of the amazing and rewarding things about this blog is the geographic distribution of its readership. It is encouraging to me that I have readers all over the world – in Scandinavia and in India and Indonesia; all through Eastern and Central Europe – Poland, Romania, Germany; and in Africa – Nigeria, Cameroon, Mozambique, South Africa; and Russia, the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.
Except for the UK, I’ve never been to any of these places. I doubt if I’ll ever get to any more of them. But it is exciting to me to know that there are men and women in these exotic, faraway places who are reading and enjoying my poetry. It would be even better if some of you would find the time to read my latest novel. I really want to find out how universal the story is. I don’t think you will have to have lived in the US to understand or enjoy it and I don’t think you will have to know much about basketball, either – although some knowledge of the game will help.
All I am asking for is one click of the mouse. Until Monday, the book is a free download. Actually it will take two mouse clicks to complete the free download and the first of those two clicks is right here.
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