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| Detailed Book Review |
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| Long Way Home |
| By Dwayne Brenna |
| ISBN: 979-8-9852820-2-3
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| Price: $17.95 |
| Shipping: $4.00 |
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| Follow the journey of Spitz McKague and the Appalachian All-Stars, a team of ex-major leaguers, misfits, and
novelty baseball players, as they barnstorm from the streets of St. Louis through the dustbowl of the mid-
western states all the way into Canada during the eventful summer of 1934. Along the way, they encounter
flagpole sitters, racist hoteliers, unscrupulous policemen, coal miners, rioters, crooked politicians, mad
shipbuilders, opium den femme fatales, and an author who bears an uncanny resemblance to John Steinbeck.
Trailing not far behind the team bus is a carload of gangsters who mean to punish the All-Stars for reneging on
a promise to throw the World Series. While struggling to complete the tour, Spitz and his teammates are also on
a metaphorical journey home, to a place where peace and self-forgiveness awaits.
See the video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4k9uBdS1nQ |
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| Book Review Details: |
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| Reviewed Appeared In: Heroic Depression-Era Journeys |
| Reviewed By: Lewis Leader |
Text Of Review: Long Way Home is a marvelous piece of writing. It is not a fast read nor is it intended to be. Like one drinks fine red wine, it needs to be read slowly, with each sip savored.
The back cover of the book says BASEBALL FICTION. That would be akin to the back cover of Moby Dick saying WHALE FICTION.
The book works on many levels. Baseball is simply the path on which the characters and the reader travels upon. (By the way, as a lifetime fan, a former high school baseball coach, and an umpire for 20 years, mainly of youth and high schoolers, the author clearly knows the sport.)
Long Way Home captures the essence of people, the countries (USA and Canada) during the Great Depression, the meaning of deep and abiding friendships and loyalty, racism, the mob, sexuality, alcoholism, and many other elements . . . including how chickens behave. The book brought to mind – but this novel is original – Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath, and Joseph Campbell’s writing on the heroic journey as each of the characters is on a heroic journey of his/her own.
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| Date Reviewed: August 2022 |
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