Comments on: Spikes

By: tflan

tflan — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:35:13 +0000

Golfer’s Delight
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I absolutely love this book. It’s ostensibly about golf – and more. If you’re a golfer, if you’re a wannabe golfer, if you like golf, read this book. Bring your dictionary and your sense of humor, and your ability to see through the golf loser context. The novel is about life, sarcastically limned. This young author is marvelous. I anxiously await his next endeavor.

By: Nat West

Nat West — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:32:40 +0000

Worth reading even if you’ve never played golf!
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
It is obvious from this book that Michael Griffith knows how to employ the tools of good fiction–solid, identifiable characters that draw you in; refreshing dialogue; amusing situations that support the narrative–without cluttering the story with the usual side streets and dead ends that are so often found in first novels. While there is no doubt that golfers will get more enjoyment out of this book than nongolfers, I’d still have enjoyed this book if it was called “Bullseye” and focused on a professional darts player (a game I’ve never really pursued). The book is both excellent social commentary and a thoughtful exploration of personal identity. The themes are part “Ball Four,” part Martin Amis (Money, Success, or The Information), and always well-pursued. I would say this is a tad more “guy fiction” than “girl fiction,” if you acknowledge such distinctions–the female characters, while superbly rendered, serve as not much more than plot devices. But what would you expect, considering it is a first-person narrative by a fictional male professional golfer? That’s certainly not Oprah Winfrey Book Club domain to begin with. That said, the book is deep and multilayered, and a real hoot. The best first novel I’ve read in 2001 by far. The only thing keeping it from five stars in my book happens in the last couple pages–I won’t spoil it by saying what that is, but rest assured it won’t ruin the 250 or so excellent pages that precede them.

By: Floyd Skloot

Floyd Skloot — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:26:06 +0000

An Ace of a Novel
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
With his dense, allusive voice, the narrator of Michael Griffith’s first novel doesn’t sound like a stereotypical professional golfer. But that’s appropriate, because Brian Schwan doesn’t play his sport like a professional golfer either. He never wins, doesn’t earn back his tournament fees, and, when in danger of actually competing with other pros, sees his game fall apart even further. Brian’s wife is after him to quit the circuit, to come home, be a real husband and start a family. So it is little wonder that when the opportunity arrives, Brian trades lives: a lovely but ill-informed TV reporter mistakes him for his successful opponent, and Brian plays along. The rest of the novel follows from this goofy premise and, within the closed world of its telling, succeeds with a charming mix of self-denigrating humor, sheer fantasy, hope and the conventional American dream of sporting success. All told in Griffith’s eloquent prose. Of course, the story should trace Brian’s collapse, the shattering of his athletic reputation, his marriage and his sense of self. But it doesn’t, and when at the conclusion Brian says, “I feel like singing,” when he reclaims his own name in a kind of triumph, the reader feels the satisfaction inherent in the best of fables. “Spikes” is a sports novel for the new millennium, its surface all attitude and posture, its depths resonant with yearning.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 09:26:10 +0000

Schwan’s Rubicon
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I’ve never played a stroke of golf (have I even hefted a club?) and I know I can’t possibly stake a claim to the game using my minigolf experience: I always did hit the windmill blade as it ratcheted past the mouse hole. But so what? It doesn’t matter. You don’t need to know golf to enjoy “Spikes.” Open yourself up to the good old-fashioned affinal angst which gets Brian going in the morning and let the surely precise mentions of four-irons, bogeys, and green strategy breeze by: the real meat of the book lies in the question: Does this journeyman golfer have the guts to make his journey into self-discovery more than just an excursion? Will he be able to choose between strong yet delusive enticements and a marriage in which he plays the role of a human pressure plate? And all this without a therapist? Find out and be entertained along the way.

As Tallulah Bankhead once said: “Nobody can be exactly like me. Sometimes even I have trouble doing it.” “Spikes” is a witty, fluent and semi-sweet novel which describes one person troubling to be what he is. Highly recommended.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 03:33:27 +0000

A nice concept, but not a good story
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I borrowed the unabridged audio version of this book from a local library. I was very interested to hear it, as I am an avid golfer and I enjoy a good story. Unfortunately, I have to say I was very disappointed with this book. I made it through the first few chapters before I had to stop.

The author seems to use numerous “cute” metaphors and other complex descriptions which tend to bog down the flow of the story. To me, this is an indication of a story that isn’t very good and must rely on fancy dressing to hide the poor storyline beneath.

The main character is portrayed as a wisecracking, down-on-his-luck golf pro. Fair enough, and that is a good start. However, he is paired with a wife who seems to have nothing in common with him. She is into antiques and is very religious. He seems interested in neither topic. It might be believable if he were absolutely passionate about golf and would do anything, including being married to a non-compatible benefactor, to continue playing professionally. However, I got the feeling that the character just liked golf, but didn’t love it.

In short, the characters and storyline just seemed poorly developed, and again, the writing style was very awkward to listen to (and read too, I would imagine).