Review: Mahoney Makes the Dreams of the Desert Come Alive
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 9, 2014
When I first came across this book, I had never heard of Charles Mahoney before, and when I learned that it was his first published novel I could not believe it. Mahoney has a way with words that rivals an author with ten times his experience. His story about football hero Gavin is evocative and deep, and his subtle changes over the course of the novel are what set him apart from other heavy-handed protagonists that can be found in today's fiction. I love football and watch it regularly, so the drama and excitement of the game really brought the writing to life, but the character development and realistic dialogue is what kept me around until the end and what makes up a substantial amount of the book itself.The setting of ‘Story of the Ghost’ is the desert, near Mexico, a setting that has an incredible amount to offer the American storyteller. It is the little things that matter here, like when Gavin eats iguana on a stick, or stares at the beauty of the Southwest. His interactions with an Indian that he met out under the Sun are surely what changes him from ‘Runner’ into ‘the Ghost’, and the struggle with fame thereafter brings this story to a sweltering climax.I would suggest this story to anyone that likes football, but at its heart, it is a story about coming to terms with youth and learning about society. I definitely cannot wait to read Mahoney’s next book!