It’s autumn, and if you’re like us, you’ll be taking some time to kick back on a Sunday to watch the big guys toss around that cowhide bladder. But don’t get too comfortable because once you’ve read Ben Fountain’s first novel, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk (Ecco), you’ll most likely be shifting in your seat on game day. Set against the manufactured pleasures of a Dallas Cowboys half-time show, Fountain’s novel takes steady aim at the spectacle of violence, excess, and exploitation that is football…and American culture. With a devastating eye for detail, Fountain manages that difficult feat of writing a book as scathing as it is funny. We think you’ll like the way Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk shows what we’ve done to ourselves. But don’t expect to be the same after you read it.
