More Than a Game

by Travis Mewhirter

Basketball and life are one of the same in the hoops-mad town of Gaithersburg. And for good reason. The Covenant Prep girls team is one of the best in the state, led by the mighty Lyla Storm, who may be the best player in the country. She has the college offers and records to prove it. The boys, too, are championship-caliber, having finished second in the state just a year ago while returning the majority of their top players. Both could realistically win the title. And then, quick as a hiccup, devastating as an Earthquake, the town’s world comes crashing down. Prep’s legendary basketball coach, Bill Stottlemyer, passes away, leaving his son, Kevin, the team’s star point guard, wondering if it’s really all worth it, playing this game. He couldn’t play, not without Coach. The community is shaken – and then shaken again, when Tara French, a player on the girl’s team, is hit by a car, leaving Lyla, her best friend, wondering, too, if it’s really all worth it. She couldn’t play, not without Tara. The town couldn’t disagree. How could they ask its two young stars to play a game in the wake of such tragedy? But they needed something, anything, to provide an escape from the specters that hung over Gaithersburg. Basketball became their collective source of refuge. So play they did, in a season that became less about the wins and losses, points and box scores, and more about life, and how sports can so often help us get through it. And the simple sport of basketball became far more than a game.

220 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 28, 2017

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Compelling, moving and fun - a lot of action packed into a small book!


I am not a huge basketball fan, but I had trouble putting this book down! The characters are people you want to get behind and cheer for. The story moves along at a nice pace, and there is a perfect balance of basketball action and human drama as a little town tries to make life make sense. I can't wait for Travis's next book!

[Travis Mewhirter · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story on the power of sports. It goes far beyond the court, and focuses on how sports, and basketball, in this case, are so much more than that.