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Playing for Pizza by John Grisham

Playing for Pizza

He doesn’t speak a word of Italian. He doesn’t know how to drive a stick. He does know how to play football, but the only team that wants him are the mighty Panthers of Parma Italy. To say that Italy holds a few surprises for Rick Dockery would be something of an understatement.

About the Book

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • After providing what is arguably the worst single performance in the history of the NFL, third-string quarterback Rick Dockery becomes a national laughingstock. Cut by the Cleveland Browns, and shunned by every other team, Rick insists that his agent find a team that does need him.

Against enormous odds, Rick lands a job—as the starting quarterback for the Mighty Panthers ... of Parma, Italy.

The Parma Panthers desperately want a former NFL player—any former NFL player—at their helm. And now they’ve got Rick, who knows nothing about Parma (not even where it is) and doesn’t speak a word of Italian. To say that Italy—the land of fine wines, extremely small cars, and football americano—holds a few surprises for Rick Dockery would be something of an understatement.

Read an Excerpt

Chapter One

It was a hospital bed, that much appeared certain, though certainty was coming and going. It was narrow and hard and there were shiny metal railings standing sentrylike along the sides, preventing escape. The sheets were plain and very white. Sanitary. The room was dark, but sunlight was trying to creep around the blinds covering the window.

He closed his eyes again; even that was painful. Then he opened them, and for a long silent minute or so he managed to keep the lids apart and focus on his cloudy little world. He was lying on his back and pinned down by firmly tucked sheets. He noticed a tube dangling to his left, running down to his hand, then disappearing up somewhere behind him. There was a voice in the distance, out in the hallway. Then he made the mistake of trying to move, just a slight adjustment of the head, and it didn't work. Hot bolts of pain hit his skull and neck and he groaned loudly.

"Rick. Are you awake?"

The voice was familiar, and quickly a face followed it. Arnie was breathing on him.

"Arnie?" he said with a weak, scratchy voice, then he swallowed.

"It's me, Rick, thank God you're...

Excerpted from Playing for Pizza by John Grisham. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

Praise

“Fans of John Grisham live for his legal thrillers, but now and then he serves up something unexpected. That’s exactly what he does, with great success, in Playing for Pizza.”—USA Today

“Enthralling.”—People

“Score another one for Grisham. . . . This is a fish-out-of-water tale that perfectly suits his strengths as a storyteller.”—USA Today

“A light-hearted story of football, food and love.”—Richmond Times-Dispatch

“Football in Italy? Who knew? Grisham means to have a sweet time with this story of a fallen NFL quarterback. And he does.”—New York Daily News

“Delightfully comic . . . a deeply satisfying story.”—The Boston Globe

“Charming . . . the author's love letter to Italy.”—Publishers Weekly

Listen to an Audio Sample

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