Bleachers

Bleachers, a fast-paced book by John Grisham, shows how reminiscing and listening to the play-by-play of past games can make grown men ignore their hurt knees and wish for one more chance at the gridiron. This is particularly true for Neely Crenshaw, possibly the best quarterback to play for the Messina Spartans. Its been fifteen years since those glory days, and Neely has returned to bury couch Eddie Rake. Memories flood back to Neely as he drives through the small town where every store displays the game schedule and no other activity occurs on Friday nights. Every Spartan, spanning from as far back as forty years when it all began, waits for the dimming of the lights on Rake Field. Coach Rake's "boys" sit in the bleachers reliving past glories trying to decide whether they love or hate him. For Neely Crenshaw, a man who must forgive both his couch and himself, the stakes are especially high. Bleachers is a love story between a game and man with twists and turns that appeal to both female and male readers. John Grisham has done it again.

Bleachers. John Grisham. Random House Inc. October 2003