1941 is a year of drama and spectacle for Americans. Joe DiMaggio's record-breaking hitting streak enlivens the summer, and winter begins with the shock and horror of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The news from Eu rope is bleak, especially for the Jewish population. Joltin' Joe, possessing a sweet swing and range in center, also has another gift: he can see the future. And he sees dark times ahead.

In her inventive novel The Powers, Valerie Sayers, in both realistic and fantastic chapters, transports the reader to an age filled with giants: Dorothy Day and Walker Ev ans appear beside DiMaggio. The problems they face, from Catholic antisemitism to the challenge of pacifism in the face of overwhelming evil, play out in very public media, among them the photography of Evans and the baseball of DiMaggio. At once magical and familiar, The Powers is a story of witness and moral responsibility that will, like Joe DiMaggio, find some unlikely fans.

About the Author

Valerie Sayers is a professor of English at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana. Born and raised in Beaufort, South Carolina, which became the thinly disguised Due East of her fiction, she lived in New York for many years. Her literary awards include a Pushcart Prize for fiction and a National Endowment for the Arts literature fellowship.

Reviews

"She's smart and irreverent, but she's also kind and compas sionate; she gives us imperfect people and makes us like and care about them, an essential task for any novelist but one accomplished by surprisingly few."

-Jonathan Yardley, Washington Post

Book Information
ISBN 9780810131477
Author Valerie Sayers
Format Paperback
Page Count 312
Imprint Northwestern University Press
Publisher Northwestern University Press
Weight(grams) 525g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 30mm