Children of God Go Bowling

We first met Shannon Olson—our semifictional heroine—in Welcome to My Planet. Now, in Children of God Go Bowling, we find Shannon in her mid-thirties and still besieged by reminders that her life is anything but normal. Her friends are blossoming in marital bliss, everyone seems to own a home, and even her baby sister is having a baby. Why, in the march to adulthood, has she been left behind?

In an effort to be proactive, Shannon embarks upon a feng shui-inspired campaign to make room in her life for a future—or at least the hope of one. She joins group therapy (to meet new people), accepts blind dates (hey, you never know), and even gives organized religion a go (with mixed results). Of course, surprises await her in the struggle against anxiety—and from some unlikely sources.

With encore performances by Shanno‛s mother, Flo (called“one of the great moms of American fictio” by Garrison Keillor), and other indelible characters from Welcome to My Planet, Children of God Go Bowling is the heroic, heartbreaking, hilarious story of a woman making her life happen when it did‛t quite happen for her.

We first met Shannon Olsonour semifictional heroinein Welcome to My Planet, Now, in Children of God Go Bowling, we find Shannon in her mid-thirties and still besieged by reminders that her life is anything but normal. Her friends are blossoming in marital bliss, everyone seems to own a home, and even her baby sister is having a baby. Why, in the march to adulthood, has she been left behind?

In an effort to be proactive, Shannon embarks upon a feng shui-inspired campaign to make room in her life for a futureor at least the hope of one. She joins group therapy (to meet new people), accepts blind dates (hey, you never know), and even gives organized religion a go (with mixed results). Of course, surprises await her in the struggle against anxietyand from some unlikely sources.

With encore performances by Shannons mother, Flo (called one of the great moms of American fiction by Garrison Keillor), and other indelible characters from Welcome to My Planet, Children of God Go Bowling is the heroic, heartbreaking, hilarious story of a woman making her life happen when it didnt quite happen for her.

- Welcome to My Planet was a Quality Paperback Book Club alternate selection

Shannon Olson, author of Welcome to My Planet, has taught creative writing and literature at the University of Minnesota.