Synopsis
High school all-American Neely Crenshaw was probably the best quarterback ever to play for the legendary Messina Spartans. Fifteen years have gone by since those glory days, and Neely has come home to Messina to bury Coach Eddie Rake, the man who molded the Spartans into an unbeatable football dynasty.
Now, as Coach Rake's "boys" sit in the bleachers waiting for the dimming field lights to signal his passing, they replay the old games, relive the old glories, and try to decide once and for all whether they love Eddie Rake or hate him. For Neely Crenshaw, a man who must finally forgive his coach and himself before he can get on with his life, the stakes are especially high.
Read by the Author!
The New York Times
This is a book designed to make a certain type of grown man cry, and the author knows exactly which buttons to push: dying father figures, the scars of tough love, middle-aged regret and the mythology of the gridiron. What saves the story from melodrama is Grisham's refusal to offer pat resolutions; he allows his ambivalent characters to remain so. It also helps that he's a sure-footed storyteller with an undeniable mastery of plotting, pacing and tone. — Jeff Turrentine