Synopses & Reviews
A ripped-from-the-headlines story about teens and steroids.
From a New York Times bestselling sports writer comes the story of one boy's quest to stay true to himself without letting down his team. Jack and his father have never seen eye to eye
until Jacks dad gives him the chance to transfer to Oakhurst his junior year. His dad sees it as a way for Jack to get into a good college; Jack sees it as refuge from his dad.
Oakhurst is more than an escapeit's a chance for Jack to do something new, to try out for the football team. Once Jack makes the team, hes thrust into a foreign worldone of intense hazing, vitamin supplements, monkey hormones and steroids. Jack has to decide how far he's willing to go to fit inand how much he's willing to compromise himself to be the man his team wants him to be.
Perfect for fans of Mike Lupica and Tim Green.
Praise for ALWAYS A CATCH:
"Richmond has written an above-average story that will appeal to fans of the genre and authors, such as Mike Lupica and Tim Green."--School Library Journal
"A dynamic but thoughtful novel of self-discovery."--Kirkus Reviews
"Richmond skillfully delivers scene after scene of gridiron grit while maintaining Jack's wit and charm, and pulling off a winning story, on and off the field. Readers can only hope that this isn't Richmond's last young adult novel."--Publishers Weekly
"This is a quick and easy read that leaves the reader with hope for Jacks future."--Library Media Connection
Review
Aubrey Menen I think it is the best-written, best-designed, and most moving novel I have read in many years. Beginning with a tiny incident among ordinary boys, it ends by being as deep and as big as evil itself.
Review
National Review A masterpiece.
Review
The Observer A model of restraint, deeply felt and beautifully written.
Review
Warren Miller Mr. Knowles has something to say about youth and war that few contemporary novelists have attempted to say and none has said better.
Review
Praise for ALWAYS A CATCH:
"Richmond has written an above-average story that will appeal to fans of the genre and authors, such as Mike Lupica and Tim Green."--School Library Journal
"A dynamic but thoughtful novel of self-discovery."--Kirkus Reviews
Synopsis
Nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read. An American classic and great bestseller for over thirty years, A Separate Peace is timeless in its description of adolescence during a period when the entire country was losing its innocence to World War II.
Set at a boys' boarding school in New England during the early years of World War II, A Separate Peace is a harrowing and luminous parable of the dark side of adolescence. Gene is a lonely, introverted intellectual. Phineas is a handsome, taunting, daredevil athlete. What happens between the two friends one summer, like the war itself, banishes the innocence of these boys and their world.
Synopsis
An American classic and great bestseller for over thirty years,
A Separate Peace is timeless in its description of adolescence during a period when the entire country was losing its innocence to the second world war.
Set at a boys’ boarding school in New England during the early years of World War II, A Separate Peace is a harrowing and luminous parable of the dark side of adolescence. Gene is a lonely, introverted intellectual. Phineas is a handsome, taunting, daredevil athlete. What happens between the two friends one summer, like the war itself, banishes the innocence of these boys and their world.
A bestseller for more than thirty years, A Separate Peace is John Knowles’s crowning achievement and an undisputed American classic.
About the Author
Peter Richmond is the New York Times bestselling author of six books of non-fiction for adults and is the co-host of a public radio show about the New York Giants called Tangled Up in Blue,” which airs on WHDD-FM. He has also taught high-school English and drama on and off for the last decade. You can visit him online at www.peterrichmond.com or follow him on Twitter at @peterbrichmond.