WINNER OF THE EDGAR AWARD WINNER OF THE PETER LOVESEY FIRST CRIME NOVEL CONTEST Friday Night Lights gone dark with Southern Gothic; Eli Cranor delivers a powerful noir that will appeal to fans of Wiley Cash and Megan Abbott. In Denton, Arkansas, the fate of the high school football team rests on the shoulders of Billy Lowe, a volatile but talented running back. Billy comes from an extremely troubled home: a trailer park where he is terrorized by his mother’s abusive boyfriend. Billy takes out his anger on the field, but when his savagery crosses a line, he faces suspension. Without Billy Lowe, the Denton Pirates can kiss their playoff bid goodbye. But the head coach, Trent Powers, who just moved from California with his wife and two children for this job, has more than just his paycheck riding on Billy’s bad behavior. As a born-again Christian, Trent feels a divine calling to save Billy—save him from his circumstances, and save his soul. Then Billy’s abuser is found murdered in the Lowe family trailer, and all evidence points toward Billy. Now nothing can stop an explosive chain of violence that could tear the whole town apart on the eve of the playoffs.

About the author The Reverend Doctor Mark Germine was born December 18, 1954. He has a daughter, Laura, and a grandson, Raphael. He is a scientist and physician, who has studied all of the world’s major religions and religious traditions. He has published scores of professional papers in the diverse areas of medicine, psychology, psychiatry, geology, materials science, mineralogy, philosophy, and theology. In theology he has written and published on the merging of all major religions and science. He earned his Master’s degree in geology at Rutgers University in 1981, and his Doctor of Medicine degree in 1988 at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in 1988, after a career in geology. He completed his residency in psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine in 1992. In 1995 he received the Annual Master Award of the American Psychological Foundation for the understanding of the human mind, and is the only physician to ever have won this award. Since his completion of his residency at Yale University School of Medicine he has practiced clinical psychiatry. He entered the ministry in 1997 in the Unitarian Church, and began preaching the Book of Eli in 1999. He is now living in Pennsylvania, and about to open the first Church of Eli as pastor.

From a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, the powerful story of how a prominent white supremacist changed his heart and mind. This is a book to help us understand the American moment and to help us better understand one another. “The story of Derek Black is the human being at his gutsy, self-reflecting, revolutionary best, told by one of America’s best storytellers at his very best. Rising Out of Hatred proclaims if the successor to the white nationalist movement can forsake his ideological upbringing, can rebirth himself in antiracism, then we can too no matter the personal cost. This book is an inspiration.” —Ibram X. Kendi, National Book Award-winning author of Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America Derek Black grew up at the epicenter of white nationalism. His father founded Stormfront, the largest racist community on the Internet. His godfather, David Duke, was a KKK Grand Wizard. By the time Derek turned nineteen, he had become an elected politician with his own daily radio show—already regarded as the "the leading light" of the burgeoning white nationalist movement. "We can infiltrate," Derek once told a crowd of white nationalists. "We can take the country back." Then he went to college. At New College of Florida, he continued to broadcast his radio show in secret each morning, living a double life until a classmate uncovered his identity and sent an email to the entire school. "Derek Black ... white supremacist, radio host ... New College student???" The ensuing uproar overtook one of the most liberal colleges in the country. Some students protested Derek's presence on campus, forcing him to reconcile for the first time with the ugliness of his beliefs. Other students found the courage to reach out to him, including an Orthodox Jew who invited Derek to attend weekly Shabbat dinners. It was because of those dinners—and the wide-ranging relationships formed at that table—that Derek started to question the science, history, and prejudices behind his worldview. As white nationalism infiltrated the political mainstream, Derek decided to confront the damage he had done. Rising Out of Hatred tells the story of how white-supremacist ideas migrated from the far-right fringe to the White House through the intensely personal saga of one man who eventually disavowed everything he was taught to believe, at tremendous personal cost. With great empathy and narrative verve, Eli Saslow asks what Derek Black's story can tell us about America's increasingly divided nature.

A memorable, atmospheric novel of love, friendship, and bonds that surpass all reason. --Kristina McMorris, New York Times best-selling author of SOLD ON A MONDAY. First cousins Eli Winfield and Delia Green grow up across the street from one another in Green Branch, South Carolina, in the 1960s and 70s. After Eli's tragic childhood accident the trajectory of their lives and of those connected to them changes. Shunned by his peers for his disfigurement, Eli struggles for acceptance as Delia devotes herself to defending him. Delia's vivid narrative voice presents Eli as a confident young man in adolescence, the visible damage to his body gone, but underneath hides indelible wounds that rule his impulses. And while Eli cherishes Delia more than anyone and attempts to protect her from her own troubles, he cares not for protecting himself. In this compelling coming of age story, two young people unite to guard each other in a world where love, hope, and connectedness ultimately triumph.

It was a classic showdown between Minnesota and Los Angeles in the Metrodome. No one could understand why we were in game seven of the World Series and Eli McBrien had not been seen since game one, when he struck out twenty-four batters in eight innings. Todd Rucket was up to bat. Against the LA pitching staff, he had been making all the pitchers look like rank amateurs. Henderson, LA's manager, walked out to the mound. Eli had been warming up gently through the last inning. His arm seemed a bit sore. But when the game was on the line, they were going to go with their twenty-year-old sensation. Young Eli McBrien has a secret ambition. This ambition is not to be the greatest pitcher ever to step on a baseball diamond (even though he is). It's not to make millions of dollars (even though he eventually does.) His secret ambition is developed by God the Father Himself as he guides Eli through his life. Every aspect of his life is pointed toward that secret ambition. Follow along on Eli's journey in Eli: Greatness Begins to see how the Father guides Eli McBrien through trials and triumphs on and off the diamond.

"What would you do if you knew your unborn child would be born with a serious birth defect? That's the question that was facing Chad and Ashley Judice of Lafayette, Louisiana, when their unborn son was diagnosed with spina bifida in a 16-weeks ultrasound. If brought to term, the child could be paralyzed from the waist on down. He would probably have little or no control of his bowels or bladder. And he could have any number of learning disabilities associated with a related birth defect called hydrocephalus, commonly referred to as "water on the brain". When the doctor gave the Judices the diagnosis, she expressed her sincere sympathy, then proceeded to ask Ashley if she wanted to terminate the pregnancy. The medical literature on this birth defect indicates 80 percent of parents who are given this diagnosis do close abortion. Ashley and Chad did not want to be in that number. Instead, they would pray for a miracle" --Cover, p. 2.

A proud but decrepit lion learns a lesson about friendship from the vultures he despises.