Synopses & Reviews
Dodgers is a dark, unforgettable coming-of-age journey that recalls the very best of Richard Price, Denis Johnson, and J.D. Salinger. It is the story of a young LA gang member named East, who is sent by his uncle along with some other teenage boys—including East’s hothead younger brother—to kill a key witness hiding out in Wisconsin. The journey takes East out of a city he’s never left and into an America that is entirely alien to him, ultimately forcing him to grapple with his place in the world and decide what kind of man he wants to become.
Written in stark and unforgettable prose and featuring an array of surprising and memorable characters rendered with empathy and wit, Dodgers heralds the arrival of a major new voice in American fiction.
Review
"With characterizations recalling the best of George Pelecanos…Fans of HBO’s The Wire and Richard Price novels will be engaged by the book’s themes of race, identity, and the U.S. class system." Library Journal (Starred Review)
Review
"In Dodgers, the tension stays high and reflective moments serve only to give the characters — and the reader — a breatherbefore the next, more exciting set piece, ofwhich there are many. Great ending, too." Esquire
Review
"I try not to read thrillers because they tend to keep me up to all hours of the night, and I don’t have the time. Bill Beverly’s Dodgers (No Exit Press) broke through my wall of self-denial and, yes, I did stay up late for two nights to finish it. Four black boys in a gang from Los Angeles are given a job: drive across the country to carry out a hit on a black judge. What can go wrong? Everything, of course. The prose is tight, the dialogue rhythmic, the pacing fast, the violence measured, and the ending unexpected. So what if I lost some sleep?" Viet Thanh Nguyen, The Financial Times
Review
"Intimate and intense, Dodgers is a gripping coming of age tale that evokes Salinger's Catcher in the Rye. It’s Bill Beverly's debut novel—his previous nonfiction book delved into the stories of criminal fugitives—and his potent, direct prose will lure you in from the first page." Los Angeles Magazine
Review
"Vastly impressive…draws lyric prose out of the unlikeliest of materials." The Wall Street Journal
Review
"Although Beverly evokes the great outdoors with photographic clarity, claustrophobia effectively haunts his narrative…With his focus on people and personalities, the author could justifiably bypass the bigger picture, the heartland rusting to death in the background. But, admirably, he doesn’t." The New York Times
Synopsis
WINNER OF THE LA TIMES BOOK PRIZE 2017 FOR BEST MYSTERY/THRILLER
WINNER OF THE CWA GOLDSBORO GOLD DAGGER 2016 FOR BEST CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR
WINNER OF THE CWA JOHN CREASEY NEW BLOOD DAGGER 2016 FOR BEST DEBUT CRIME NOVEL
FINALIST FOR THE PEN/HEMINGWAY AWARD 2017 FOR DEBUT FICTION
LONGLISTED FOR ANDREW CARNEGIE MEDAL 2017 FOR EXCELLENCE IN FICTION
NOMINATED FOR THE EDGAR AWARD 2017 FOR BEST FIRST NOVEL
Dodgers is a dark, unforgettable coming-of-age journey that recalls the very best of Richard Price, Denis Johnson, and J.D. Salinger. It is the story of a young LA gang member named East, who is sent by his uncle along with some other teenage boys--including East's hothead younger brother--to kill a key witness hiding out in Wisconsin. The journey takes East out of a city he's never left and into an America that is entirely alien to him, ultimately forcing him to grapple with his place in the world and decide what kind of man he wants to become.
Written in stark and unforgettable prose and featuring an array of surprising and memorable characters rendered with empathy and wit, Dodgers heralds the arrival of a major new voice in American fiction.
About the Author
Bill Beverly grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and studied at Oberlin College and the University of Florida. His research on criminal fugitives and the stories surrounding them became the book On the Lam: Narratives of Flight in J. Edgar Hoover’s America. He teaches American literature and writing at Trinity University in Washington, DC.