Grappling Klay: A Young Adult Novel of Wrestling, Loss, and Redemption

Why are we so afraid to ask for help, when the cost of staying silent could be a matter of life and death?

 

Matt de la Peña's Mexican WhiteBoy meets Kathleen Glasgow's You'd Be Home By Now (or Mandy McGinnis's Heroine) in this tender and heartrending novel about what it means to be open to receiving the love and care that is all around us when we hit rock bottom. 

 

A fiercely honest and spirited debut that shines a spotlight onto mental illness, the cost of keeping secrets, and childhood trauma, through the hopeful eyes of 18-year-old high school wrestling star, Klay Atwater.

 

Klay is destined for greatness, with his eye on the prize - the nation's top-rated wrestling program at Penn State. He's also got his eye on Kassie, his adoring, patient girlfriend - and the only person who has ever made him feel safe and loved.

 

Klay's past and home life are a far cry from his school persona - his dad remarried, but the death of his mother from drug use haunts them both. When she died, Klay was just a little boy, his dad unable to handle the stress of parenting under the crushing weight of grief. It's all seemingly in the past.

 

Until now.

 

Klay can't breathe. He can't move. He can't think. What's happening to him? Wrestling used to be his medicine, but now he can't even imagine getting on the mat without freezing up. Was he ever good at it in the first place? Was it all an illusion?

 

As Klay begins to unravel, the people closest to him struggle to understand his erratic and sometimes violent behavior. His girlfriend Kassie and his best friend Jace sense the emptiness in Klay's eyes, unable to break through to him.

 

Klay has no one to turn to, except for maybe one person, but betrayal after betrayal drives him further into a shame spiral that feels like quicksand. He's got to find a way out. 

1144083376
Grappling Klay: A Young Adult Novel of Wrestling, Loss, and Redemption

Why are we so afraid to ask for help, when the cost of staying silent could be a matter of life and death?

 

Matt de la Peña's Mexican WhiteBoy meets Kathleen Glasgow's You'd Be Home By Now (or Mandy McGinnis's Heroine) in this tender and heartrending novel about what it means to be open to receiving the love and care that is all around us when we hit rock bottom. 

 

A fiercely honest and spirited debut that shines a spotlight onto mental illness, the cost of keeping secrets, and childhood trauma, through the hopeful eyes of 18-year-old high school wrestling star, Klay Atwater.

 

Klay is destined for greatness, with his eye on the prize - the nation's top-rated wrestling program at Penn State. He's also got his eye on Kassie, his adoring, patient girlfriend - and the only person who has ever made him feel safe and loved.

 

Klay's past and home life are a far cry from his school persona - his dad remarried, but the death of his mother from drug use haunts them both. When she died, Klay was just a little boy, his dad unable to handle the stress of parenting under the crushing weight of grief. It's all seemingly in the past.

 

Until now.

 

Klay can't breathe. He can't move. He can't think. What's happening to him? Wrestling used to be his medicine, but now he can't even imagine getting on the mat without freezing up. Was he ever good at it in the first place? Was it all an illusion?

 

As Klay begins to unravel, the people closest to him struggle to understand his erratic and sometimes violent behavior. His girlfriend Kassie and his best friend Jace sense the emptiness in Klay's eyes, unable to break through to him.

 

Klay has no one to turn to, except for maybe one person, but betrayal after betrayal drives him further into a shame spiral that feels like quicksand. He's got to find a way out. 

9.99 In Stock
Grappling Klay: A Young Adult Novel of Wrestling, Loss, and Redemption

Grappling Klay: A Young Adult Novel of Wrestling, Loss, and Redemption

by Lukas Castillo
Grappling Klay: A Young Adult Novel of Wrestling, Loss, and Redemption

Grappling Klay: A Young Adult Novel of Wrestling, Loss, and Redemption

by Lukas Castillo

eBook

$9.99 

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Overview

Why are we so afraid to ask for help, when the cost of staying silent could be a matter of life and death?

 

Matt de la Peña's Mexican WhiteBoy meets Kathleen Glasgow's You'd Be Home By Now (or Mandy McGinnis's Heroine) in this tender and heartrending novel about what it means to be open to receiving the love and care that is all around us when we hit rock bottom. 

 

A fiercely honest and spirited debut that shines a spotlight onto mental illness, the cost of keeping secrets, and childhood trauma, through the hopeful eyes of 18-year-old high school wrestling star, Klay Atwater.

 

Klay is destined for greatness, with his eye on the prize - the nation's top-rated wrestling program at Penn State. He's also got his eye on Kassie, his adoring, patient girlfriend - and the only person who has ever made him feel safe and loved.

 

Klay's past and home life are a far cry from his school persona - his dad remarried, but the death of his mother from drug use haunts them both. When she died, Klay was just a little boy, his dad unable to handle the stress of parenting under the crushing weight of grief. It's all seemingly in the past.

 

Until now.

 

Klay can't breathe. He can't move. He can't think. What's happening to him? Wrestling used to be his medicine, but now he can't even imagine getting on the mat without freezing up. Was he ever good at it in the first place? Was it all an illusion?

 

As Klay begins to unravel, the people closest to him struggle to understand his erratic and sometimes violent behavior. His girlfriend Kassie and his best friend Jace sense the emptiness in Klay's eyes, unable to break through to him.

 

Klay has no one to turn to, except for maybe one person, but betrayal after betrayal drives him further into a shame spiral that feels like quicksand. He's got to find a way out. 


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9798218280260
Publisher: Lukas Castillo
Publication date: 09/06/2023
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 246
File size: 1 MB
Age Range: 13 - 18 Years

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

  • Chapter 1: Sanctuary
  • Chapter 2: Down from Cloud Nine
  • Chapter 3: The Basement
  • Chapter 4: Under the Bridge
  • Chapter 5: Physical Therapy
  • Chapter 6: Good Vibes
  • Chapter 7: Campus Fantasy
  • Chapter 8: Necessary Perfection
  • Chapter 9: My Fortified Wall
  • Chapter 10: Help Wanted
  • Chapter 11: Who to Blame
  • Chapter 12: Black and Silent
  • Chapter 13: Alley of Illusions
  • Chapter 14: Jamaican Run
  • Chapter 15: A Promise
  • Chapter 16: Listen!
  • Chapter 17: Bigot
  • Chapter 18: A Better World
  • Chapter 19: Frozen
  • Chapter 20: Leashed
  • Chapter 21: Reverse
  • Chapter 22: To Talk
  • Chapter 23: Bogus Offer
  • Chapter 24: The Salto
  • Chapter 25: Prideless
  • Chapter 26: Lost Soul
  • Chapter 27: My Best Friend
  • Chapter 28: Betrayal
  • Chapter 29: The Ingram Conundrum
  • Chapter 30: No Luck
  • Chapter 31: The Object of My Emotional Affect
  • Chapter 32: Success
  • Chapter 33: Snowfall
  • Chapter 34: Match Night
  • Chapter 35: Aftermath
  • Chapter 36: I'm Sorry
  • Chapter 37: The Void
  • Chapter 38: That One Thing
  • Chapter 39: Golden Beams
  • Chapter 40: The Burden
  • Chapter 41: Priorities
  • Chapter 42: Brothers
  • Chapter 43: Empathetic
  • Chapter 44: Stars and Ice
  • Chapter 45: Pass
  • Chapter 46: Stopgap
  • Chapter 47: Good Luck
  • Chapter 48: The Frigid Breeze
  • Chapter 49: The Grind
  • Chapter 50: It's Alright
  • Acknowledgments


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