Stroke: A Novel - Softcover

Miller, Carlos Ledson

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0972029346 ISBN 13: 9780972029346

Publisher: Redbud Publishing, 2004

Set on the Texas Gulf Coast, STROKE is the story of a young woman’s quest to compete in the male-dominated world of professional pool.

Rich in images and accurate in the nuances of the game, Miller captures our attention with a title that at first glance might conjure up images of hypertension. But STROKE is aptly named. Pool players know that being "in stroke" is akin to basketball players being "in the zone."

Refreshingly, STROKE is not just another pool hustle novel. Sedonia Forbes, raised by a single-parent father who fostered her athletic skills and encouraged her competitive nature, wins the U. S. Amateur Women’s Golf Championship and is heralded as an up-and-coming, female Tiger Woods.

But before Sedonia turns professional, she receives two crushing blows. The first is the death of her father, and the second is a severe shoulder injury that precludes her ever playing golf again. These losses bring her life to a standstill.

When the story opens, Sedonia’s competitive nature and her need to excel begin to kindle a new fire among the ashes of her heartbreak. Leaving the country-club life behind, she enters the green felt, poolroom jungle.

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From the Publisher:

Praise for STROKE

"Stroke is amazing, and Miller gets it right. He knows the game as well as the pain, sacrifice, and beauty of competitive sports. A wonderful look at pool and at life." -- Jeanette Lee, "The Black Widow," Women's Professional Billiard Association

"Stroke is really a fun read. I love Sedonia's heart, guts and her fearless and ambitious determination to be as good as she can be." -- Ewa Laurance, "The Striking Viking," Women's Professional Billiard Association

"True lovers of pool will fall in love with Stroke. With a deft touch and a keen eye, Carlos Ledson Miller has captured the sport in all its nuanced beauty." -- R. A. Dyer, author of Hustler Days, Minnesota Fats, Wimpy Lassiter, Jersey Red, and America's Great Age of Pool

"Stroke stays true to the game. Inspiring. Ambitious. A thoroughly enjoyable book." -- Kim White,"Lone Star," Women's Professional Billiard Association

"Like A River Runs through It and The Hustler, Stroke transcends the central activity of its characters and emerges, not only as a great pool story, but simply a great story. As a pool player I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I know it will appeal to anyone who appreciates literature, regardless of any prior exposure to the game." -- Tom Ross, columnist, Billiards Digest Magazine

"An awesome, original novel. Once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. Sedonia is my hero! -- Deanna Henson, OB Cues Women's 9-Ball Tour

"Good pool fiction is hard to find. Hence, it was real treat to find a new billiard novel that is well written and a good read. Most pool players can identify with Stroke, but it is clearly deserving of a wider audience." -- Sheri Richardson, Chalk and Cue Magazine.

"An enjoyable book. I identify with Sedonia's intense ambition to win an open world championship." -- Jackie Broadhurst, former BCA Women's Singles Champion

"Stroke is very well written . . . more about the polished world and personal relationships of female pros than about the world of gambling." -- Tom Shaw, editor, Pool and Billiard Magazine

"Stroke is a great book and one of a kind. Truly a must read for the player in all of us. It spots other pool stories `the six and the breaks'." -- Michele Thompson, former VNEA Women's Singles Champion

About the Author:

CARLOS LEDSON MILLER grew up in both Central America and the United States, spending his time between British Honduras, now Belize, and high school and college in Louisiana. After a four-year stint in the Marine Corps, Carlos settled on the Texas Gulf Coast, where he now lives, writes and shoots pool.

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