It feels odd to be quoting the gold bullion and coin commercials that have apparently imprinted their message into my subconsciousness, but I'm really excited about this new book. Its author, Chris Cleave, also penned Little Bee, which was a runaway sucess, and Incendiary.
In the words of the September issue of Writer's Digest, Gold is about "...two rival Olympic cyclists--one a single-minded athlete to the core, the other an emotionally torn parent to a daughter with leukemia."
When unathletic Cleave first started working on this project, he spent two months training 20 hours a week as a cyclist, so that he would better understand his subject matter. The physical exertion wreaked havoc on his immune system, which gave him the idea for coupling the story of a sick child with that of elite athletes.
To research childhood leukemia, Cleave spent time at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London. He was so touched by the children he met there that this past June, he completed the HotChillee London-Paris bike ride to raise money for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research. In total, his team raised over £100,000.
Since I just purchased this book, and likely won't finish it until after both the actual Olympics are over and my Aug. 7-21 chemo round, I can't comment on how good it is. But I've got a feeling it's not going to disappoint...
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