Here is the absorbing story of twenty-two men who gather every fall to painstakingly reenact what ESPN called “the most shocking play in NFL history” and the Washington Redskins dubbed the “Throwback Special”: the November 1985 play in which the Redskins' Joe Theismann had his leg horribly broken by Lawrence Taylor of the New York Giants live on Monday Night Football. Chris Bachelder introduces us to Charles, a psychologist whose expertise is in high demand; George, a garrulous public librarian; Fat Michael, envied and despised by the others for being exquisitely fit; Jeff, a recently divorced man who has become a theorist of marriage; and more. Over the course of a weekend, the men reveal their secret hopes, fears, and passions as they choose roles, spend a long night of the soul preparing for the play, and finally enact their bizarre ritual for what may be the last time. Along the way, mishaps, misunderstandings, and grievances pile up, and the comforting traditions holding the group together threaten to give way.The Throwback Special is a moving and comic tale filled with pitch-perfect observations about manhood, marriage, middle age, and the rituals we all enact as part of being alive.  

A novel from the author of 'Bear v. Shark'.

A comic novel that imagines the serial resurrection and assassination of tireless muckraker and writer Upton Sinclair. Sinclair is repeatedly brought back to life by beleaguered but optimistic leftists (whose refrain is 'Hope and Shovels Forever'), and then gunned down (once harpooned) by those seeking fame, fortune and American business as usual.

An inventive new novel by the author of Bear v. Shark chronicles the serial resurrection and assassination of muckraker Upton Sinclair, who is repeatedly brought back to risk his life for the Socialist revolution, only to end up dead at the hands of those seeking fame, fortune, and American business. Original. 20,000 first printing.

Who would win if a bear got in a fight with a shark? Las Vegas is the venue for the spectacle and Curtis Norman has won a national contest to attend. As he heads across the country to what turns out to be an apocaplyptic climax, he becomes disenchanted by the media and gambling frenzy.

In this satire of our media-saturated culture, Las Vegas is to host a spectacle - Bear v Shark II. All of America is desperate to get a ticket, but it is young Curtis Norman who, with an essay, wins a national writing contest and four tickets to the show.

With all America obsessed by the upcoming confrontation Bear v. Shark II, a Las Vegas spectacular involving two computer-generated animals, young Curtis Norman is delighted when he wins a national essay contest and four tickets to the event, in a hilarious satire about out media- and entertainment-obsessed culture. 15,000 first printing.