Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Mar 2016
224 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
A slyly profound and startlingly original novel about the psyche of the American male, The Throwback Special marks the return of one of the most acclaimed literary voices of his generation.
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.
With wit and great empathy, 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 many 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.
"Starred Review. Bachelder's take on manhood is sharply observed and sympathetic and funny enough to win over even those readers who abhor football and its fans." - Kirkus
"This novel may appeal mainly to fanatical football fans who are also readers of literary fiction - a restricted market, to be sure - but it merits a far larger and more diverse audience." - Booklist
"Filled with subtle humor and incisive insights, Bachelder's novel will resonate with anyone who has pondered the game of life." - Publishers Weekly
"What a brilliant book. Bachelder is doing things that very few other writers can manage, and making it look so easy." - Kevin Wilson, author of The Family Fang
"With The Throwback Special, Chris Bachelder has written a hilarious literary novel about our least hilarious - and least literary - national pastime." - Tom Bissell, author of Extra Lives
"A comic meditation about marriage, ritual, friendship, parenthood, aging, and unlikely obsessions, The Throwback Special is a funny, insightful, and surprisingly poignant book." - Julie Schumacher, bestselling author of Dear Committee Members
This information about The Throwback Special was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Photo: Jason Sheldon
Chris Bachelder is the author of four novels, including The Throwback Special, a National Book Award finalist and winner of the Terry Southern Prize for Humor. He lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.
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