Something Rising: Light and Swift Hardcover - 2004

From the publisher

In her first two books, Haven Kimmel claimed her spot on the literary scene- surprising readers with her memoir, "A Girl Named Zippy," and winning an outpouring of critical acclaim for her first novel, "The Solace of Leaving Early." Now, in her second novel, she brings to the page a heroine's tireless quest for truth, love, justice, and the perfect game of 9-ball.

Cassie Claiborne's world is riddled with problems beyond her control: her hard- living, pool-shooting father has another wife; her stoic, long-suffering mother is incapable of moving herself mentally away from the kitchen window; her sister Belle is a tempest of fragility and brilliance; her closest friends, Puck and Emmy, are adolescent harbingers of their own doomed futures. Frustrated by her inability to care deeply enough for so many troubled souls, Cassie finds in the local pool hall an oasis of green felt where she can master objects and restrain her emotions.

In this ultimately uplifting story, Haven Kimmel reaches deep into the hamstrung souls of her fictional corner of Indiana. Remarkable for its tough tenderness, "Something Rising (Light and Swift)" is an astonishing work of pure heartbreak.