“Nobody writes about the thick-headed glories of sport with redder blood
than Atkinson. . . . He evokes the true joy of kicking ass.” —Men’s Health
Caveman Politics is a wild tale of the lowdown life and politics of a small Florida town. When a black man is accused of raping a white woman, his eccentric rugby teammates come out in force to help him, led by the crusading reporter Joe Dolan.
The cops have presumed Mike guilty, the D.A. is determined to convict him at any cost for political reasons, and the “victim” is ready to sell her story to the movies. In the mix are a bizarre assortment of rugby players, a black lawyer who knows the system all too well, a life insurance salesman with a death wish, and a schizophrenic Elvis impersonator who may be the King reborn.
Needless to say, in short time all hell breaks loose. It’s a ribald, hilarious, tragic, unflinching look at the underbelly of America, full of dirty realism, intrigue, brutality, humor, romance, hate, love, sex, and the caveman politics of life.
A finalist for the Discover Great New Writers Award, Caveman Politics has gained a reputation as a cult novel and a no-holds-barred Florida thriller ranking with those of Carl Hiaasen and James Hall. Ice Time, Mr. Atkinson’s nationally renowned account of schoolboy hockey in his hometown, was a Publishers Weekly “Notable Book of the Year,” and a New England Booksellers Association bestseller.
