I've been wanting to read this for forever, and was happy to find this copy while deliberating over how to spend a gift card at B&N!

I read this one on a business trip in the NYC area this week, and thoroughly enjoyed it. It's the kind of book I immediately wanted to read again once I finished, but instead I'm going to set it free. I know I'll have another chance to read another copy ... another day :)

I'm fascinated by the writing in this book. It's compassionate, literate, educated, and also ... contains one of the best bits of sports writing I've ever read

The second one started to come in shoulder-high, and before it was two thirds of the way to the plate, I was already standing on second base. My glove was going up as the bat cracked against the ball, and I saw the ball move in a straight line directly over Schwartzie's head, high over his head, moving so fast he hadn't even had time to regain his balance from the pitch before it went past him. I saw Dov Shlomowitz heading toward me and Danny Saunders racing to first and I heard the yeshiva team shouting and Sidney Goldberg screaming, and I jumped, pushing myself upward off the ground with all the strength I had in my legs and stretching my glove hand till I thought it would pull out of my shoulder. The ball hit the pocket of my glove with an impact that numbed my hand and went through me like an electric shock, and I felt the force pull me backward and throw me off balance, and I came down hard on my left hip and elbow.

I'm still trying to figure out why we don''t know Danny's sister's name. I'm not sure if we ever get it, but it''s certainly not mentioned the first time she enters the picture in Chapter 12. Interesting.

One of my favorite quotes in this book is from Reuven's father, when asked about his friend Jack Rose: "Honest differences of opinion should never be permitted to destroy a friendship."

I finished this book with a lot of questions. What was Potok's life circumstance when he wrote this? Is it autobiographical? Who is Danny? What about Billy and Mr. Savo? Where are the rest of his books (I want to read them)?

RELEASE NOTES:

Left on a propped-open door handle next to what used to be CVS. I''m hoping someone caught it walking in to work!

If you are new to BookCrossing and find this book and this site; welcome! Enjoy the site, the book and hopefully the BookCrossing community. I hope you''''ll join BookCrossing (doesn''''t cost anything to join!) and if you do, please consider using any previous reader of this book, or me, Antof9, as the member who referred you. If you are an old hand at BookCrossing, thanks for picking up the book! Either way, I hope you''ll journal so all the previous and future readers can track this book''''s journey. Thanks, and Happy Crossing!