Description
Book SynopsisIn a political culture infused with debates about personal liberties, the role of government, and even the definition of freedom itself, Haymaker tells the story of an isolated Michigan town that becomes the flashpoint for some of the principal ideological debates of our day. When a libertarian organization selects the town as its flagship community, hundreds of its members migrate and settle within the town''s borders. The resulting clash with local townspeople is violent and impassioned, even as the line that divides the two sides increasingly blurs.
The story follows characters on both of these sides: an eccentric millionaire known as The Man in White, who is still viewed as an outsider even after living in Haymaker for thirty years; a policewoman trained in hostage and suicide negotiations who questions raising children in this new environment; a teenage girl devoted to basketball and her desire to leave home, who has a close but complicated relationship with her un
Trade Review
Thoughtful fiction with an unusual political twist on the theme of insiders vs. outsiders.
* Kirkus Reviews *
A read to pair with classic works of Paine, maybe a bit of Orwell and most certainly with Rand, Schuitema's first novel resonates as a real-life American example of the current and changing state of democracy, and what real Americans across demographics believe that term to mean. Yet, it reads as an engaging short story with a weaving, character-driven plot and not a word out of place.
* Chicago Book Review *
Haymaker is an entertaining book for people who like a little politics in their fiction.
* National Review *
Haymaker is as dazzling and overpowering as a Michigan winter and a powerful debut into the world of novel writing.
* Rain Taxi *
Schuitema has crafted a description of contemporary small-town life that is easily transferred anywhere in the United States.... A flat-out good read.
* Foreword Reviews *
