A Short History of the Long Ball - Hardcover

Cronin, Justin

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0933031238 ISBN 13: 9780933031234

Publisher: Council Oak Books, 1995

Synopsis

Tells the story of two boys who remain friends through adulthood regardless of their contrasting family values and differing personal choices

About this title

About the Author:

Justin Cronin is a graduate of the Iowa Writer's Workshop, and a professor of creative writing at La Salle University in Philadelphia. His work has appeared in many literary journals.

From Library Journal:

This 1990 winner of the National Novella Award--selected by Francois Camoin, author of the short story collection Why Men Are Afraid of Women ( LJ 8/84)--explores the childhood relationship of Jake and Donny--one a good kid, one bad. Their friendship is premised on Donny's chal lenges to Jake's moral integrity, an intergrity that ultimately triumphs and is granted the just reward of the righteous man. The baseball metaphor works peripherally to draw together the segments of story, which are based completely on Jake's memory. While the prose is comfortable and the construction artful, this character study remains basically shallow. We begin with a taunting Donny and a bristling Jake; we are left with an older, broken, addicted Donny struggling to begin yet again, while Jake magnanimously honors his old friend's attempt. More interesting for style than content, this fast read can be recommended for large fiction collections.
- Joyce M. Latham, Southern Maryland Regional Lib. Assn., Charlotte Hall
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Council Oak Books
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 0933031238
• ISBN 13: 9780933031234
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 91