false 423681 10 Peel back the made-for-TV-movie premise of Dave King's <I>The Ha-Ha</I> and you'll find a shrewd, engrossing, and occasionally gritty first novel in the tradition of Jane Smiley. Howard is a brain-damaged Vietnam vet who can't speak or write, but who has managed to establish a reasonably good life in his small Midwestern hometown. In fact, Howard's chief limitation isn't his silence but his lingering romantic attachment to his high school girlfriend, Sylvia, now the drug-addicted single mother of a nine-year-old boy named Ryan (not Howard's child). Accustomed to Howard's devotion--and equally accustomed to rejecting his love, like a campfire she pees on again and again--Sylvia more or less dumps Ryan on him when she is forced to enter rehab. Yes, the handicapped vet must forge a relationship with the sullen fatherless boy. With material as Hallmark-tinged like this, it's only through vivid, honest, and far from syrupy characterization that King keeps sentimentality at bay. You can predict what happens when the gruff Howard begins to coach Little League (aw, shucks), but not his ferocious reaction to Sylvia's eventual betrayal. A skillful debut with several surprises. <I>--Regina Marler</I> 938416 11 1 2005 The Ha-Ha: A Novel total:908|5:154|4:361|3:276|2:85|1:32| 908 3244 1305 200 4 2 false false Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Jul 05 17:15:22 -0700 2007 Sun Mar 29 15:06:04 -0700 2009
Not a perfect book by any ...more...]]> 4 1 false false Tue Jun 03 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Jun 02 10:56:50 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 04 09:19:10 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Tue Sep 18 07:56:23 -0700 2007 Tue Sep 18 08:01:55 -0700 2007
Wow. It is such a great story written in such an easy, down to earth, everyman (but not, as youll soon see) tone....

The main character had severe head trama in the war at a yo...more...]]> 3 1 false false Thu Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Thu Nov 01 17:49:25 -0700 2007 Wed Nov 14 17:14:03 -0800 2007 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 15 07:26:07 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 15 07:26:26 -0800 2009
Then his friend (and former high school girlfriend) calls him one day for a...more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon May 11 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon May 11 10:22:05 -0700 2009 Mon May 11 10:43:10 -0700 2009 more...]]> 0 0 false false Thu Feb 05 09:30:05 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 09:30:05 -0800 2009 King's first novel could have overflowed into mawkishness, but it didn't. Ha-Ha, which centers on the relationship between Ryan and Howard and the stripping away of their defenses, rings true to life without emotional manipulation. The writing is excellent, and King creates tender, complex character...

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When his former girlfrien...more...]]> 5 1 false false Fri Jul 11 12:10:22 -0700 2008 Fri Jul 11 12:11:22 -0700 2008 4 0 false false Wed Feb 25 15:01:55 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 25 15:07:19 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Fri Mar 07 14:27:10 -0800 2008 Fri Mar 07 14:29:14 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Mon Sep 14 18:05:38 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 14 18:28:29 -0700 2009
Gosh I loved this book! It was well written, unique and thoughtful.This is a character driven novel by a first time novelist. The main character, Howard, suffered a traumatic head injury 16 days into his tour in Vietnam and hasn't spoken since. King does a trem...more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Feb 24 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 22 14:43:42 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 24 05:33:02 -0800 2009
The thing that really struck me the most was the depth of emotion that he showed in the main...more...]]> 0 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 22 13:41:38 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 04 08:01:55 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Feb 22 15:41:43 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 22 15:48:38 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Aug 21 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 10 17:24:44 -0700 2009 Sat Aug 22 07:04:10 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Fri Nov 14 06:34:36 -0800 2008 Fri Nov 14 06:48:02 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri Oct 10 16:54:54 -0700 2008 Tue Oct 14 22:23:29 -0700 2008
I found in the author interview that Dave King is also a poet, a...more...]]>