Winning

By Bryce Christensen

In the small town of Dilthon, Wyoming, high-school football is religion and the local football coach, Brad Porter, is god. But Coach Porter is a cruel and unforgiving deity, so fiercely determined to... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1593747977
• ISBN13: 9781593747978
• Release Date: January 2016
• Publisher: Whiskey Creek Press
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.58 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Reviewed for Midwest Book Review

Dave Lloyd has lived his life as an agnostic, unswayed by two very important persons in his life, both devout Christians: the man who saved his life during the Korean War and Dave's wife Susan. Dave teaches at Dilthon High School, where his nephew Brad Porter is also a teacher and football coach. Brad is a tenacious man who does not believe in losing and will not accept defeat. When one of Brad's players commits suicide after failing to score for the team, Brad doesn't make an appearance at the boy's funeral and seems unconcerned he is the reason for the boy's death. But when Brad faces a personal tragedy, he becomes a different man and trades his position as football coach for that of cross-country. There, Brad coaches a bunch of stragglers, encouraging them to do their best to win but preaching that losing is a part of life. When Brad's car veers off a road, causing his death, the town believes he committed suicide but an autopsy reveals otherwise. Dave is a man who tends to stay in the background, observing and offering quiet advice to others. Throughout his life and following the deaths of several close family members, he has privately agonized over his doubts about God, but through the people who travel in and out of his life, he begins to find some measure of understanding and peace. Powerfully written with in-depth characterization, Winning is itself a winner. Christensen's philosophical style will appeal to all readers, along with prose delivered with a luring cadence that at times comes very close to poetic. A poignant, thought-provoking story providing a galvanizing look at family dynamics, inner struggles, and the impetus behind certain driven behaviors, this book will hold the reader's attention until the end.