The Book of Norman, a Novel (Paperback)

Review "With wit and verve, Allan Appel has crafted a delightful comic novel. Best of all is its irresistible narrator-protagonist, uncertainly poised between belief and unbelief, family loyalty and rebelliousness. Underneath the clever plot twists is a genuine quest for wisdom and a warmth and tenderness rare in today's fiction." ―Phillip Lopate, author of A Mother's Tale, The Art of the Personal Essay, To Show and Tell: The Craft of Literary Nonfiction, and Waterfront: Walk Around Manhattan"As fast-paced, audacious, and irreverent as a pickup basketball game played for human souls, The Book of Norman is a joyful romp through the minefield of American religious difference. Allan Appel writes with a verve and wit that transform his fearlessness into pure fun." ―Peter Manseau, author of Songs for the Butcher's Daughter"Allan Appel does it again! His unique blend of rabbinic play, stand-up comedy, and religious obsession has led him to produce a sly novel that explores how America's hunger for redemption bumps up against world-weary, Jewish hope and disbelief." ―Rabbi James E. Ponet, Howard M. Holtzmann Jewish Chaplain, Emeritus, Yale University“I can't think of many novels that … manage to be intelligent and sympathetic to not one but two oft-misunderstood American religions…. Quite a feat.” Mark Oppenheimer, religion columnist, The New York Times Product Description "I can't think of many novels that . . . manage to be intelligent and sympathetic to not one but two oft-misunderstood American religions . . . Quite a feat." ―Mark Oppenheimer, The New York TimesThe Book of Norman probes Mormon-Jewish relationships and traditions with humor and thoughtfulness. A sibling rivalry erupts between brothers Norman and Jon Gould, who compete for their dead father's soul in this wild theological ride set in southern California during the Summer of Love. Norman, a recent drop-out from the New York Jewish Seminary, wants to catch up on his generation's sex, love, and rock 'n' roll. Yet when his doper brother Jon gets a buzz cut, sells his stash, and becomes a Mormon-in- training, the battle is engaged. As the religious tug-of- war ensues, Norman tries to pull his brother back to Judaism while Jon tries to prove to Norman that Mormonism is the truer path. The struggle culminates in a monumental and hilarious game of basketball pitting Norman and two gorgeous Jewish angels, Tali and Aviva, against a Mormon team headed by Wes, the Elder, and his compatriots.Allan Appel, novelist and playwright, is the author of The Hebrew Tutor of Bel Air; High Holiday Sutra, a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection; and The Rabbi of Casino Boulevard, a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award. Raised in California and a longtime New Yorker, he lives in Connecticut, where he is a writer for the New Haven Independent. About the Author Allan Appel, born in Chicago and raised in Los Angeles, is a prize-winning novelist and playwright whose books include Club Revelation, High Holiday Sutra, winner of a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers Award, and The Rabbi of Casino Boulevard, a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award. His work has appeared in The National Jewish Monthly, The Progressive, National Lampoon,and Tablet, and his plays have been produced in New York, Chicago, New Haven, Provincetown, and points in between. The Excommunication of Mrs. Eaton, about Puritan theocracy in early New Haven, won the Connecticut Heritage Productions full-length play award in 2011. He has published a total of 14 books, including eight novels. Among his plays, Dear Heartsey, a staged adaptation based on the 1733 correspondence of colonial New Yorker Abigail Franks, was commissioned by the American Jewish Historical Society, and was presented in a staged reading, starring Anne Jackson and Eli Wallach. His play The Catcher Wears Two Masks, based on the life of 1930s Major Leaguer and early atomic spy Moe Berg, was developed at