Finding Forrester

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The only tie-in to the Columbia Pictures film starring Sean Connery, directed by Gus Van Sant (Good Will Hunting)—an inspiring story about the unlikely friendship between a famous, reclusive novelist and an amazingly gifted teen who secretly yearns to be a writer. Set in Manhattan and the South Bronx, William Forrester (Connery), a Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist who has not been heard from for four decades, accidentally discovers that Jamal, a brash 16-year-old African-American who plays basketball on the court below his window, keeps a secret journal that shows a real gift for writing. Forrester takes Jamal on as a protégé, and the friendship challenges and changes the two of them forever. Written by an accomplished novelist, based on an award-winning screenplay, this story yearns to be a novel as well as a movie. The inspiration came from an interview conducted by the screenwriter, former radio news director Mike Rich: "I was doing an interview with someone about America's greatest authors, and I noticed that so many of them, Salinger or Pynchon, for example, seemed to be eccentric, reclusive types. I thought a story that showed how someone helped a great writer break through that barrier of isolation and re-enter the world would make a terrific story, especially if that person were a teenager who is also in some way gifted." Rich's screenplay became one of five finalists out of 4,500 entries to win the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Nicholl writing award for new screenwriters. Other actors in Finding Forrester include F. Murray Abraham, Anna Paquin, Busta Phymes, Zane Copeland, James "Fly" Williams III, Michael Nouri, and, in hisfirst acting role, Rob Brown, a 15-year-old student at Poly Prep High School in Brooklyn, New York.

Author Biography: James W. Ellison is the author of seven novels published by Doubleday, Little Brown, and Dodd Mead, including the award-winning I'm Owen Harrison Harding, and holds a lifetime fellowship in the novel to the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference at Middlebury College. He lives in New York City. Mike Rich is a news anchor at KINK-FM in Portland, Oregon, and, before that, he was with KGW and with KREM-FM in Spokane, Washington. A graduate of Oregon State University, he lives with his family in Portland, Oregon.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

This rather workmanlike novelization of the award-winning Mike Rich screenplay for the current Academy Award- hyped Sean Connery flick was penned by the author of other novels based on the screenplays of Immortal Beloved, Rudy and A Bronx Tale (plus seven original novels, including the award-winning I'm Owen Harrison Harding, and a lengthy list of nonfiction titles). In order to be one of the guys, Jamal Wallace, a fatherless 16-year-old South Bronx African-American basketball phenom, has been keeping his literary ambitions under heavy wraps. Curious about the regular visits of a well-dressed courier in a fancy car to a shadowy figure living in a tenement across from the basketball court, on a dare Jamal climbs in a window to investigate, only to leave his backpack after he is scared into a hasty retreat. When the backpack is tossed back to him a few days later, he finds the writing in his notebooks has been edited. Jamal confronts the recluse and soon discovers he is the legendary 70-year-old William Forrester, who vanished after winning a Pulitzer for his only novel, written while he was still in his 20s. Now mentored by Forrester, Jamal is recruited by a snobby Manhattan prep school for his high SAT scores and basketball moves. Befriended by the pretty daughter of a WASP millionaire, he is riding high when a teacher who failed as a novelist accuses him of plagiarism and his friends desert him. Already a Scholastic Book Club selection, this warmhearted--however clich d and Horatio Algeresque--fable bridges that nebulous and indefinable no-man's-land between YA readers and their parents. (Feb.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Children's Literature

Novelizations are the odd ducks of fiction. They are neither original, nor can they have any pretensions toward serious literary qualities. That said, Ellison has done a yeoman's job of translating the screenplay of the popular movie onto paper. Set-up scenes and conclusions still taste of the truncated script, and characters are explained rather than growing of their own accord, but the story itself is a keeper, and once in, the pages turn. The premise is simple and clever—Bronx slum kid with smarts breaks into the world of aging hermetic writer (more than a few shades of Salinger) and together they bloom. With the added mix of basketball and themes of racial integration and general high school angst, the book and movie should both play well in classroom situations for underachievers. 2000, Newmarket Press, $9.95. Ages 12 up. Reviewer: Kathleen Karr

VOYA

The unlikely friendship between reclusive author William Forrester, a sixty-something surly Scotsman, and black sixteen-year-old Jamal Wallace warily develops around their love of writing. After an unusual and suspicion-laden beginning to their relationship, Forrester agrees to help Jamal with his writing on the condition that it be kept secret and that everything written in Forrester's apartment stays there. When Jamal is accepted to Mailer-Callow, an upscale private school, his academic and social life changes in ways he never imagined possible. His basketball skills help him make friends at the new school, but his old friends think that he has deserted them. Jamal's new friend Claire is white, wealthy, and wants to be more than just a friend. Adding to his turmoil is Mr. Crawford, the English teacher who is reluctant to believe Jamal's academic talents equal his basketball skills. When Crawford challenges the authenticity of Jamal's work, the teenager is forced to make a decision that will test his friendships and his integrity. Basketball and interracial friendships are just two of the topics that guarantee this enjoyable novel's success. The real surprise is the emphasis on books and reading as a form of self-expression. The story might strike a chord with bright teenage boys who hide their intelligence to avoid upstaging their friends. Using humor and insight, Ellison adeptly creates a believable and rewarding relationship between the older man and the teenager. Based on a screenplay for the movie of the same name, this well-paced, easy-to-read book is recommended for any students eager to relive some of their favorite scenes. Teachers will also find it useful for writing andsocial issues discussions. VOYA CODES: 4Q 4P J S (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses; Broad general YA appeal; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12). 2000, Newmarket Press, 192p, Trade pb. Ages 13 to 18. Reviewer: Brenda Moses-Allen SOURCE: VOYA, June 2001 (Vol. 24, No. 2)

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