#2 Amazon International Bestseller | Recommended by Kirkus Reviews A group of troubled but charismatic boys in a tough Buffalo, NY neighborhood play basketball at a local park and dream of winning a state high school championship. Driven by raw talent and killer instinct, they dominate the court, but everywhere else, they feel like losers. HAMMOND is told through the eyes of James Lombardi, a precocious but mentally ill boy who believes winning a championship will ease his "Evil Thoughts" and save his family, long haunted by generations of substance abuse, uncontrollable rage, and suicide. A dark but humorous coming-of-age novel, HAMMOND offers a poetic and disturbing look inside the complex mind of an adolescent boy as he slowly learns that having the heart of a champion can sometimes be more burden than blessing. *Warning: Contains heavy profanity, child abuse, graphic sex, drug and alcohol abuse, violence, and disturbing psychological content. This is a character-led literary novel, not a plot-led commercial novel. CRITICAL ACCLAIM FOR HAMMOND: "Earnest, hardscrabble story of restless youth, mental illness, and the saving grace of sports-inspired camaraderie . . . Compelling."-Kirkus Reviews, Recommended Review Selection "...a revealing standout in the literature which grabs the reader's attention... reminiscent of the classic I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, with its powerful, introspective view."-Diane Donovan, California Bookwatch "This is the book that marks Jonathan LaPoma as my favorite underrated author . . . Hammond is truly a masterpiece of the coming-of-age genre."-Audrey L., Warped Shelves "Succeeds on many levels... Fans of Jim Carroll's The Basketball Diaries will find many similar themes in this book."-Mark Heisey, The US Review of Books "As raw and unfiltered as any coming-of-age book I have ever read . . . lingers in the mind long after finishing it."-Edwin Howard, NetGalley THE ALACRÁN SERIES UNIVERSE: Hammond is the explosive first installment in a loosely linked standalone novel series. Each novel features themes of alienation and transformation and can be read completely independently of the others. Explore the full universe: ¿ Book 1: Hammond ¿ Book 2: The Summer of Crud ¿ Book 3: Understanding the Alacrán ¿ Book 4: Developing Minds: An American Ghost Story ¿ Book 5: The Soul City Salvation Permanently Preserved in National & Elite Research Libraries: The Library of Congress, University College London (UCL), and Zentralbibliothek Zürich (Switzerland).