Two men from disparate worlds search for what constitutes a meaningful life in a searing portrait of honor and masculinity, sport and celebrity, marriage and parenthood in this “rough, tough, and thoughtful” (Phil Mushnick, New York Post) debut from Pulitzer Prize finalist and front-page columnist Mark Di Ionno.
Joe Grudeck is a living legend—a first-ballot Hall of Famer beloved by Boston Red Sox fans who once played for millions under the bright Fenway lights. Now, he finds himself haunted by his own history, searching for connection in a world that’s alienated his true self beneath his celebrity persona. Soon, he’ll step back into the spotlight once more with a very risky Cooperstown acceptance speech that has the power to change everything—except the darkness in his past.
Horace Mueller is a different type altogether—working in darkness at a museum blacksmith shop and living in a rundown farmhouse on the outskirts of Cooperstown, New York. He clings to an antiquated lifestyle, fueled by nostalgia for simpler times and a rebellion against the sport-celebrity lifestyle of Cooperstown. His baseball prodigy son, however, veers towards everything Horace has spent his life railing against.
Gods of Wood and Stone is the story of these two men—a timeless, but strikingly singular tale of the responsibilities of manhood and the pitfalls of glory in a painful and exhilarating novel that’s distinctly American. “Delivered with a fan’s passion, a journalist’s eye for detail, and the unblinking courage of a storyteller, Mark Di Ionno knocks it out of the park with this piercing literary thriller” (Bryan Gruley, award-winning author of the Starvation Lake trilogy).
Genre: Literary Fiction
Joe Grudeck is a living legend—a first-ballot Hall of Famer beloved by Boston Red Sox fans who once played for millions under the bright Fenway lights. Now, he finds himself haunted by his own history, searching for connection in a world that’s alienated his true self beneath his celebrity persona. Soon, he’ll step back into the spotlight once more with a very risky Cooperstown acceptance speech that has the power to change everything—except the darkness in his past.
Horace Mueller is a different type altogether—working in darkness at a museum blacksmith shop and living in a rundown farmhouse on the outskirts of Cooperstown, New York. He clings to an antiquated lifestyle, fueled by nostalgia for simpler times and a rebellion against the sport-celebrity lifestyle of Cooperstown. His baseball prodigy son, however, veers towards everything Horace has spent his life railing against.
Gods of Wood and Stone is the story of these two men—a timeless, but strikingly singular tale of the responsibilities of manhood and the pitfalls of glory in a painful and exhilarating novel that’s distinctly American. “Delivered with a fan’s passion, a journalist’s eye for detail, and the unblinking courage of a storyteller, Mark Di Ionno knocks it out of the park with this piercing literary thriller” (Bryan Gruley, award-winning author of the Starvation Lake trilogy).
Genre: Literary Fiction
Praise for this book
"Engrossing from the first page, this clear-eyed and atmospheric novel hurtled me through a roller coaster of emotions—from curiosity to outrage to relief. How are American men raised to think about fame, talent, hard work, and women? What happens when two men with opposing worldviews get in each other’s way? Gods of Wood and Stone raises important questions of our time." - Alice Elliott Dark
"Framed against a backdrop of baseball and a life of land and country, this is a novel of nostalgia vs. progress, of grind vs. instant gratification, of lasting glory vs. Twitter celebrity. Delivered with a fan’s passion, a journalist’s eye for detail, and the unblinking courage of a storyteller, Mark Di Ionno knocks it out of the park with this piercing literary thriller, Gods of Wood and Stone." - Bryan Gruley
"Framed against a backdrop of baseball and a life of land and country, this is a novel of nostalgia vs. progress, of grind vs. instant gratification, of lasting glory vs. Twitter celebrity. Delivered with a fan’s passion, a journalist’s eye for detail, and the unblinking courage of a storyteller, Mark Di Ionno knocks it out of the park with this piercing literary thriller, Gods of Wood and Stone." - Bryan Gruley
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