Blind Your Ponies

This is a sports novel that brings the reader into the existential struggle that all of us, athlete and non-athlete alike, fight once we attempt to make our lives count for something that actually matters.Lots of engaging, well-developed characters.

If you need a feel good read this is it. As a basketball mom/grandma, from a tiny town, this one had me in tears. Sent a copy to my grandsons.

Like many I was drawn to this book by the title- “Blind Your Ponies.” It sounded so bizarre I just had to read it. I have just finished the book for the second time and am more in love with it now than when I read it the first time. As a professional public address announcer for a successful Northern Illinois high school basketball team that lost in the state championship by 2 points I was immediately captured by the underdog status of this group of kids. I’m not sure you can fully appreciate this story unless you’ve been one of those underdogs- the kid that always got picked on in school…the ugly girl or guy who couldn’t get a date for the school dance…the skinny weakling who didn’t succeed in any sport. Unless you’ve experienced the heartbreak of being a loser you may be tempted to write this story off as a cheap imitation of “Hoosiers”- but it’s so much more than that. Few books truly inspire…they may conjure up a tear or even a chill or two but rarely move you to get off your duff and get on with life. This one does just that. If you have any sensitivity at all you’ll want to relate to these kids and this coach and do what they did. A great book- one that I will read again and again- and so should you.

Sam Pickett is the coach of the Willow Creek High School basketball team. He's also an English teacher at the school who is prone to place events within the context of Cervantes' Don Quixote. Willow Creek is a very small town in a thinly populated region in Montana. There are only nineteen students in the high school. Yet, the "Broncs" still manage to compete in basketball, although they had lost ninety-three consecutive games at the point this novel begins.They only have six players in toto. Injuries, players fouling out, and, in one case, a player's low grades mean that they often must play with four (or even three) players on the court. They play against teams from much larger schools who can simply wear the exhausted (but spirited) Broncs down. Other teams have the luxury of a full bench with ample replacements. The Broncs sometimes have a hard time simply finding five to start a game in order to avoid a forfeit; on one occasion they must start a student coach who is woefully out of shape.The book largely consists of the stories of some of the players. One is plagued by a drunken father who brutally mocks the team. Another player is an exchange student from Norway who stands six eleven. Yet, he had never played basketball in Norway and was not very athletic when he came to Willow Creek. Another player moved to Willow Creek from Minnesota when his parents divorced. He lives with his grandmother, herself a fascinating person.Author Stanley Gordon West skillfully describes several games. His detailed play-by-play accounts were exciting. I have certainly heard local radio broadcasts of high school basketball games that were, in comparison, very dry indeed.In addition to the players and the games, there's a big fan who is on the lam from the IRS, another fan who is trying to mend a heart that was broken decades earlier, and the sister of one of the players who suffers from cerebral palsy. She becomes an inspiration for the team.Some of the writing lacks all subtlety. Some would say it's all very predictable. But I did get swept up in "Bronc Fever" and found myself cheering the gritty team.

This is a moving book full of characters who have experienced unbelievable pain and/or lost. Each character has a bloody streak on the highway leading to Willow Creek. Each character has a challenge to overcome. The reader will find themself rooting again and again for the team, the players, the coaches, the townspeople….I had 200 pages left and was already mourning coming to the end. If you are not basketball savvy, no worries. You will still be able to relate. If a book of over 500 pages intimidates you, this is an easy read that is difficult, if not, impossible to put down. If you come from a small town, you will understand the nuances better than those from the city. If you are an educator, you will feel the passion and honor of having the privilege of positively impacting the life of a child.I encourage everyone to grab this book, plan a few unhindered days and dig in. Enjoy!!Thank you Stanley Gordon West : )

What a wild ride! From the first few pages I hoped this book would match it’s promise. Did it ever! What an extraordinary, beautiful, absorbing, exciting story. Highly recommended.

great story