SUFFIELD, Conn., Jan. 8, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- We all know the story of the small town where our parents grew up. Friendships they made in their childhood stood the tests of time and distance. Their town always centered on family, cooperation and friendship. That is the idyllic perception of small town America. But in reality, there are towns that have no real center. In these communities, friendships are based on necessity instead of personal choices.
"The Bridge Club" (now available through 1st Books Library) offers readers a peek into a fictional town that has no anchoring center and is bordered by an isolating river. The story of a closeted gay teacher and his student friends unfolds in a powerful and thought-provoking fashion.
The multi-faceted characters in "The Bridge Club" hold the false assumption that the bordering river, which mystically seems to prevent any summer storm from engulfing it, also keeps all other threats of a changing world at bay. A night of terrifying thunderstorms from the east is followed by a series of life-shattering events, all of which reach their climax just before the river barrier breaks. This serves as the wake up call for the group of young friends; it is a sign that change can never be stopped.
"The Bridge Club" was written by a father-daughter team. R. Michael Kelley and Krista Noel Kelley wrote "The Bridge Club" over a period of seven years. Together they conceptualized "The Bridge Club" back in 1995 as the Kelley's way of making a social commentary. Here, they discuss the issues of independent thinking and individuality in high school students, both of which are currently undergoing close scrutiny in today's educational system.
R. Michael Kelley is a Certified Financial Planner with MetLife Securities Incorporated and lives in Suffield, Conn. with his wife, Linda. Krista Noel Kelley has recently completed her master's degree in literature at Northeastern University in Boston, Mass. and now works as a high school English teacher in Denver, Colo.
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