Frank Nappi - Welcome to the Show - Review & Giveaway

About the Book

It’s 1950 and Mickey Tussler—the now-famous pitching prodigy with autism and a golden arm—is back for another baseball season in this third installment of Frank Nappi’s critically acclaimed Legend of Mickey Tussler series. Talk of Mickey’s legendary exploits on the field has grown since his improbable debut two years prior, as have the fortunes of Murph and the rest of the lovable ragtag Brew Crew. Now Mickey, Murph, and Lester find themselves heading to Bean Town to play for the Boston Braves.

The call up is sweet, for all of them have overcome insurmountable odds to get where they are. But life in the major leagues is filled with fast-paced action both on and off the field. The bright lights of Boston hold a new series of challenges, hardships, and life lessons—especially for Mickey, who finds himself a long way from throwing apples into a barrel back on the farm. The three newest Braves have each other to lean on, as well as a new group of fans who are swept away by pennant fever, but balancing everything this new world has to offer may prove to be the greatest challenge of all.



My Review

I always judge a book based on how quickly I'm able to get through it. And this one I was able to finish in one, maybe two sittings tops. So it definitely gets my seal of approval for that. I'm not a fan of long, drawn out story lines  that take forever to get to the point. And thankfully WELCOME TO THE SHOW was the complete opposite of that. It moved along at fast clip. I didn't get bored. Honestly, I was fully engaged in the story from the first page to the last. So thanks, Frank Nappi for capturing my attention, and keeping it.

Because let's face it, coming up with the plot of a baseball book is tricky. If you're going to write one from spring training to the end of the season, it means A LOT of scenes about A LOT of games. The danger is things can get repetitive in a hurry. The same line-up. The same pitches coming in. But this book held some surprises for me, like the back-to-back home run blasts that go foul, first one to the left field foul pole then one to the right. Or having the starting pitcher, who pitched the night before, come in to close out a do-or-die game with everything on the line. Nappi is no doubt a fan of the game, and he gets all its little eccentricities right. I'm pleased to say that the amount of detail - like the pitch counts, or the catcher's signs - don't affect the overall pace of the storytelling. It moves quicker than one of Mickey's blazing fastballs.

While I love reading baseball books for the baseball, that's not what I'll take away from this one. The emotion behind each play, each managerial decision that's what I'll remember. Players can go out and take the field night after night, but if a group of guys isn't busting their butts for each other, no matter how talented the individual players are, you're not going to have a TEAM. Mickey's tale is a good reminder that the game is played by people, people from all walks of life. And when the chemistry is right, sometimes magical things can happen.

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Welcome to the Show can be purchased at:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
iTunes

Prices/Formats: $9.99 ebook, $9.99 paperback
Genre: Sports, YA, Special Needs
Pages: 288
Release: April 19, 2016
Publisher: Sky Pony
ISBN: 9781634508292
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About the Author

Frank Nappi has taught high school English and Creative Writing for over twenty five years. His debut novel, ECHOES FROM THE INFANTRY, received national attention, including MWSA's silver medal for outstanding fiction. His follow-up novel, THE LEGEND OF MICKEY TUSSLER, garnered rave reviews as well, including a movie adaptation of the touching story "A Mile in His Shoes" starring Dean Cain and Luke Schroder. Nappi continues to produce quality work, including SOPHOMORE CAMPAIGN, the intriguing sequel to the much heralded original story and the thriller, NOBODY HAS TO KNOW, which received an endorsement from #1 New York Times bestselling author Nelson DeMille. The third installment of Nappi's Mickey Tussler series, WELCOME TO THE SHOW, was released April 2016, and he is currently working on his next thriller, AS LONG AS WE BOTH SHALL LIVE. Nappi lives on Long Island with his wife Julia and their two sons, Nicholas and Anthony.

Links to connect with Frank:
Web Site
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
YouTube


About the Giveaway

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