The Spin

by Don Keith

"Sometimes you must listen to your heart, not just your head." Jerry Gray is an average working man, a straight-arrow, a faithful husband, good father, and solid provider. But now some very non-average problems are threatening to overwhelm him. His marriage is failing, his daughter may well be losing her fight with a rare blood disease, and he is financially strapped from that illness and paying his late father's nursing home and funeral expenses. He is also frustrated because he cannot follow a long-held dream. Then, at the worst possible time, he is laid off from his job. That is the final blow that pushes Jerry to step outside his straight-arrow existence--the one instilled in him by his late father--and take a risk he would never have contemplated before: bet everything he has left on one spin of the roulette wheel in Las Vegas. But news of his quest finds its way into the media and before he knows it, Gray's spin captures the imagination of millions. Many of them decide they want to take their own spin with him in an effort to break out of their dismal existence. Or just to take a chance on something better. Hundreds show up at Jerry's house in Southern California, hundreds more join him as he makes his way to Vegas and The Spin. As the resulting media circus makes The Spin far more than it was when it began, Jerry Gray realizes that it is a powerful symbol for him and for others who have resisted stepping beyond the usual and mundane in order to reach for the exceptional. Along the way, we meet a fascinating cast of characters, each of whom achieve a new life after participating in Gray's spin. There is Chauncey, Jerry's and his late father's friend and co-worker, who holds a deep, dark secret Jerry could have never guessed. A beautiful would-be singer whose self-imposed limitations have prevented her remarkable music from being heard. A throwback from the "Summer of Love" whose odd advice and incantations urge them all along to a new way of looking at life. A frustrated novelist whose fear of failure stymies his stories before they are ever committed to the page. The owners of a struggling off-the-strip casino and the publisher of a gritty, girly magazine who realize their own dreams when The Spin lands in their laps. A pro-basketball player whose addiction has him on death's edge until he literally drops into the middle of the odd caravan as it winds its way through the desert, headed for The Spin. Once you experience the shocking, unexpected, but powerfully inspiring outcome of Jerry's fascinating story and after you get to know these fascinating individuals, the message becomes clear. It is not about red or black on the Las Vegas casino roulette wheel. This remarkable story will inspire everyone to listen to his or her heart, take reasonable chances, and reach for a dream.

210 pages, Paperback

First published August 10, 2012

About the author

Award-winning and best-selling author of more than 40 published works, Don Keith was born in 1947 and has lived in the South all his life. He attended the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa where he received his degree in broadcast and film communication with a minor in English and literature. While working as a broadcast journalist, he won awards from the Associated Press and United Press International for news writing and reporting. He was also the first winner of Troy State University's Hector Award for innovation in broadcast journalism. As an on-the-air broadcaster, Don won the Billboard Magazine "Radio Personality of the Year" in two formats, country and contemporary. Keith was a broadcast personality for over twenty years in Birmingham and Nashville, and also owned his own consultancy, co-owned a Mobile, Alabama, radio station (WZEW-FM), and hosted and produced several nationally syndicated radio shows.

His first novel, THE FOREVER SEASON, was published by St. Martin's Press in the fall of 1995 to commercial and critical success. It called heavily on Keith's own athletic and academic experiences. Reviewers praised its unique approach and powerful story. The novel won the Alabama Library Association's "Fiction of the Year" award in 1997, joining works likewise honored from Harper Lee and others, and was re-issued in the fall of 2002 by the University of Alabama Press as part of its prestigious Deep South Books series.

He has written both fiction and non-fiction, including several books on WWII history, biographies, and military thrillers. His co-written thriller, HUNTER KILLER, was the basis for the hit movie starring Gerard Butler and Gary Oldman.

Reviews

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started reading The Spin about eight months ago, and as of yesterday was only about half-way through it. I finished the last half in one sitting.

From the very beginning I was drawn in by the elegant writing and smart pacing, and became attached to the quirky characters. Despite all that, however, I found it difficult to stay focused on the story. I was puzzled by this contradiction for a long time, but now I think I understand.

This is much more than just a good story. It is an important book with an important message.

Sure it's entertaining on the surface and, like any good book, has additional depth. Rarely though does the heart of a work of literature connect with me so personally. I think even before I was conscious of this fact, I grasped it on some level. Eight months ago, I just wasn't ready for it. I wasn't prepared to join Jerry Gray in his quest.

Today, though, I am. It was exactly what I needed--the voice of encouragement and inspiration that all of us need from time to time.