Best Selling Books by Brian Doyle

From a "born storyteller" (Seattle Times), this playful and moving bestselling book of essays invites us into the miraculous and transcendent moments of everyday life. When Brian Doyle passed away at the age of sixty after a bout with brain cancer, he left behind a cult-like following of devoted readers who regard his writing as one of the best-kept secrets of the twenty-first century. Doyle writes with a delightful sense of wonder about the sanctity of everyday things, and about love and connection in all their forms: spiritual love, brotherly love, romantic love, and even the love of a nine-foot sturgeon. At a moment when the world can sometimes feel darker than ever, Doyle''s writing, which constantly evokes the humor and even bliss that life affords, is a balm. His essays manage to find, again and again, exquisite beauty in the quotidian, whether it''s the awe of a child the first time she hears a river, or a husband''s whiskers that a grieving widow misses seeing in her sink every morning. Through Doyle''s eyes, nothing is dull. David James Duncan sums up Doyle''s sensibilities best in his introduction to the collection: "Brian Doyle lived the pleasure of bearing daily witness to quiet glories hidden in people, places and creatures of little or no size, renown, or commercial value, and he brought inimitably playful or soaring or aching or heartfelt language to his tellings." A life''s work, One Long River of Song invites readers to experience joy and wonder in ordinary moments that become, under Doyle''s rapturous and exuberant gaze, extraordinary.

In this remarkable collection of essays, acclaimed writer Brian Doyle offers “resurrections, restorations, reconsiderations, appreciations, enthusiasms, headlong solos, laughing prayers, imaginary meetings with most unusual and most interesting men.” Geographically and chronologically diverse-Plutarch of Greece; William Blake of England; Robert Louis Stevenson of Scotland; James Joyce and Van Morrison of Ireland; and others-Doyle sees them as men of “immense spiritual substance, prayerful fury, enormous grace,” men concerned with “the moral grapple” and “the sinuous crucial puzzle of love.” In telling the stories of these talented, troubled, and extraordinary men, Doyle discerns clues about how to be a good man, headlong in the pursuit of love and capable of greatness.

Soccer is the worldu0092s most popular sport, and the greatest player of the current generation has been the other-worldly Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal. Overcoming a heart problem as a teenager, Ronaldo set scoring records while playing for powerhouses Manchester United in the British Premier League and Real Madrid in Spainu0092s La Liga, won numerous major titles, and was named the worldu0092s best player two times. Off the field he has been cited for his generosity as the most charitable athlete, making him also a star in life. This biography will inspire young readers.

Winner of the Canadian Library Association Book of the Year, the Geoffrey Bilson Award, the Ruth Schwartz Award, and an ALA Notable Books List selection Martin O''Boy''s life is not easy. His beloved Granny has just died, his pregnant mother and father fight all the time and his twin, Phil, is completely incapacitated. Martin is the one his mother counts on. But life in Ottawa''s Lowertown is not all bad. He has his best friend, Billy Batson (a.k.a. Captain Marvel), the movies, his cat Cheap and there''s the glamorous Buz from next door, who is off at the war.As the war comes to an end with the bombing of Hiroshima -- on Martin''s birthday -- Ottawa is in a state of turmoil. Returning soldiers, parties, fights and drunks fill the streets. It would all be very exciting, except for one thing. In their endless pursuit of more funds Martin and Billy have joined the church choir -- as summer boys. And the organist, Mr. T.D.S. George, is awfully fond of Martin. But Martin, despite his hardships, has a pure soul and his Granny''s love, Billy''s friendship, Buz''s imminent return, and even his mother''s reliance on him, which help him to deliver a kind of justice to Mr. George, and to heal himself and others.

"An affectionate homage," this novel of Stevenson''s evolution into an adventure writer is "a loving reconstruction of an era of storytelling now lost" ( New York Times). The young Robert Louis Stevenson, living in a boarding house in San Francisco in the nineteenth century while waiting for his beloved''s divorce from her feckless husband, dreamed of writing a soaring novel about his landlady''s adventurous and globe-trotting husband, John Carson—but he never got around to it. And very soon thereafter he was married, headed home to Scotland, and on his way to becoming the most famous novelist in the world, after writing such classics as Treasure Island, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Kidnapped. But now Brian Doyle brings Stevenson''s untold tale to life, braiding the adventures of seaman John Carson with those of a young Stevenson, wandering the streets of San Francisco, gathering material for his fiction, and yearning for his beloved across the bay. An adventure tale, an elegy to one of the greatest writers of our language, a time-traveling plunge into The City by the Bay during its own energetic youth, The Adventures of John Carson in Several Quarters of the World is entertaining, poignant, and sensual. "[A] triumph." — Washington Post "Rich prose and a unique perspective on one of the world''s most beloved authors." — Publishers Weekly "A tale of bounding energy with a delicate touch, driving always towards the beautiful and the true." —Helen Garner, author of The Spare Room "[A] tender, affectionate, and terribly fun homage to the joys of storytelling and storytellers." — Kirkus Reviews

In this award-winning paean to country life we find Hubbo O''Driscoll, whom we first met in Easy Avenue, now living in the lower Gatineau with his guardian aunt and uncle. When the local covered bridge -- home to a wayward ghost and her lovelorn postman -- is threatened by development, Hubbo must devise a strategy to save it.

"Versions of these articles were published previously..."--T.p. verso.

In the sequel to the award-winning Boy O''Boy, it''s spring in post-World War II Ottawa and Martin O''Boy has finally found a true home with Grampa Rip. Martin''s also found a job, working for the Pure Spring soft drink company. Best of all, he''s in love with beautiful Gerty McDowell. But everything''s not perfect. Martin lied to kindly Mr. Mirsky, Pure Spring''s owner, to get the job. Grampa Rip''s brain increasingly goes missing. There''s that mysterious, yet oddly familiar, man in the park. There are also Martin''s memories, the sudden appearance of famed Soviet defector Igor Gouzensko, and Martin''s shady boss, Randy. And worst of all, Randy is robbing Gerty''s grandfather, and he''s forcing Martin to be his accomplice. Martin''s happiness, sense of duty, and love for Gerty collide. Can he find his way through these dire developments? Brian Doyle''s fast-paced plot and vivid characterizations, along with the lively colloquial dialogue and period detail, create a rich historical portrait that confirms the author''s place as a master storyteller.

After witnessing a murder on the coldest day of the year, Spud Sweetgrass becomes the target of both Detective Kennedy of the police department and the murderer himself. Reprint.

Prose poems, chants, litanies, simple songs, cadenced prayers, brief bursts of rhythmic observation, elegies to little moments that are not little at all in the least whatsoever--welcome to the melodic world of Brian Doyle''s "proems," swirling with voices unreeling tales, souls telling stories, moments photographed with ink. Accessible, easy to read, blunt, brief, and sometimes unforgettable, "these are not poems," says the author, "but life set to the music of poetry." In A Shimmer of Something, Brian Doyle''s characteristic humor and sincerity combine to make this collection a delight to read. From his conviction that miracles breed ripples that do not cease, to his lack of faith about the life of an elderberry bush, to the amusing story of a friend''s experience of driving the Dalai Lama to Seattle, to the humorous experience of his second Confession, to an intimate story of love and loss, Doyle''s lean stories of spiritual substance inspire, entertain, and captivate.

A collection of essays on the people, things, and events encountered in everyday life, with reflections on their meaning for our lives.

“Brian Doyle is an extraordinary writer whose tales will endure.” —Cynthia Ozick, National Book Critics Circle Award-winning author of Quarrel and Quandary This is a guided tour through the mind of one of the most acclaimed voices in contemporary Catholic writing. Brian Doyle effortlessly connects the everyday with the inexpressible and consistently marries searingly honest prose with interruptions of humor and humanity. These essays bear Doyle’s trademark depth and deliver with eloquence his piercing observations on mohawks and miracles, vigils and velociraptors, syntax and scapulars, jail and jihad, and mercy beyond sense. A 2018 Catholic Press Association Book Award winner. The audio edition of this book can be downloaded via Audible.

This lyrical tale of a young man''s first foray into adulthood offers "a moving ode to the city of Chicago and the singular nature of its people" ( Booklist, starred review) On the last day of summer, a young college grad moves to Chicago and rents a small apartment on the north side of the city, by the lake. This is the story of the five seasons he lives there in the late 1970s, during which he meets gangsters, gamblers, policemen, a brave and garrulous bus driver, a cricket player, a librettist, his first girlfriend, a shy apartment manager, and many other riveting souls, not to mention a wise and personable dog of indeterminate breed. A love letter to Chicago, the Great American City, and a wry account of a young man''s coming-of-age during the one summer in White Sox history when they had the best outfield in baseball, Chicago is a novel that will plunge you into a city you will never forget and may well wish to visit for the rest of your days.

"Dave is fourteen years old, living with his family in a cabin on Oregon''s Mount Hood (or as Dave prefers to call it, like the Native Americans once did, Wy''east). He is entering high school, adulthood on the horizon not far off in distance, and contemplating a future away from his mother, father, and his precocious younger sister. And Dave is not the only one approaching adulthood and its freedoms on Wy''east that summer. Martin, a pine marten (a small animal of the deep woods, of the otter/mink family), is leaving his own mother and siblings and setting off on his own as well"--

Is Brian Doyle the most passionate Catholic storyteller in America? Here is new evidence that he is. In this brand new compilation of some of his best stories that have appeared in various publications throughout the world, Doyle explores the promise of Catholicism in America that he has experienced and observed from his childhood through today.

Brian Doyle himself explains it best: “A few years ago I was moaning to my wry gentle dad that basketball, which seems to me inarguably the most graceful and generous and swift and fluid and ferociously-competitive-without-being-sociopathic of sports, has not produced rafts of good books, like baseball and golf and cricket and surfing have . . . Where are the great basketball novels to rival The Natural and the glorious Mark Harris baseball quartet and the great Bernard Darwin’s golf stories? Where are the annual anthologies of terrific basketball essays? How can a game full of such wit and creativity and magic not spark more great books?" “‘Why don’t you write one?’ said my dad, who is great at cutting politely to the chase." And so he has. In this collection of short essays, Brian Doyle presents a compelling account of a life lived playing, watching, loving, and coaching basketball. He recounts his passion for the gyms, the playgrounds, the sounds and scents, the camaraderie, the fierce competition, the anticipation and exhaustion, and even some of the injuries.

Doyle’s trademark candor, wit, and humor make this collection of more than 40 essays eminently enjoyable to read. From preparing for his First Confession by creating a fake laundry list of sins, to observing his mom’s reaction to John F. Kennedy’s assassination, to pondering his friend’s surprising success with Catholic Golf Digest, Doyle’s passionate writing is as likely to make us shed a tear as it is to make us laugh out loud. In the end, The Thorny Grace of It proves that, far from being extinguished, the Catholic faith—imperfect as it is—is wildly aflame in hearts and lives everywhere!