Features
'Almost Famous' a reality after two decades
By Joseph Gnbennan
In his Camp Hill home, sur
rounded by acclaim for his first
published novel, David Small is
nappy.
He’s happy about his book’s
positive critical reception. He’s
nappy the book is in its third
pnnting.And, he’s happy that
the paperback rights nave just
been sold.
Small, deserves some hap
piness. After twenty years of
writing, and some permanently
shelved unpublished novels, he
finally has a winner.
His book Almost Famous
(Norton) is the story of a
young baseball star’s emotional
collapse after a car accident
shatters his career. The event
is the basis for his theme, “The
two death phenomenon.”
The “two death
phenomenon,” Small believes,
“is that an athlete dies twice,
unlike the rest of us who die on
ly once.
First the athlete dies at the
end of his career, and then
natural death.”
Small feels baseball allowed
him a unique forum to analyze
this because, “baseball is a
metaphor. This metaphor can
be attributed to my brother and
my past.” He explains that his
brother was the source for the
main character, and that a lot
of the material is biographical.
For instance, the mam
character’s father dies of a
tragic death, as did his own.
Small feels that all fiction is
somewhat biographical. He adds
“Making sense out of life
for himself and for others is
what it’s all about.”
Small was born in Gardiner,
Maine in 1937. He attended
Carlisle High School, and
received a B.A. in English
Literature from Lancaster’s
Franklin and Marshall College
in 1960.
He’s always enjoyed writing.
However, there was a time in
his life where anything he wrote
Guitarist to perform
Solo guitarist Richard
Metzger will appear at Capitol
Campus in the Lion’s Den on
December 2,1982 at 12:15 p.m.
Mr. Metzger will perform, on
acoustic guitar, classical selec
tions including four pieces by
J. S. Bach.
Metzger, described by critics
as a personable young man
with good performer-to-
audience communication,
enlivens his recitals with brief,
sometimes lighthearted, com-
“I don’t want to be a celebrity, I want to be a writer.”
he hated. He attributes this to a
writer’s block, and a lack of
self-confidence.
Small first began writing
Almost Famous, while he was
still in college. Years passed,
and there was still frustration
and disappointment. After
mentaries on the selections. He
uses no amplifying equipment
so that his sound, pure and in
timate, maintains the integrity
of the compositions. As stated
in a recent review, Metzger’s
music sounds like music.
Mr. Metzger received a
Bachelor of Fine Arts in music
from Pennsylvania State
University and now teaches at
Lehigh University, College
Misericordia (Dallas, PA), and
at Wilkes College (Wilkes-Barre)
Photography by Joe Hart
years of re-writes he still had
no readers.
In his Capitol Campus lec
ture, at the Annual Book and
Author gathering on October
19th, Small told of his long
tedious re-writes over a period
of years. “After almost two
decades, I stuck with this book
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get pregnant
the first time.
because I was so deep in the
forest there was really no way
out.” And, quite candidly Small
admits, “I can’t live a mean-
ingful life without writing.”
Small was enthusiastic about
the lecture. In an exclusive in
terview, Small said, “if you tell
others what you’ve gone
through, they may be in
spired and encouraged to pur
sue their own secret ambitions,
however far off they may
seem.”
How many authors like Small
receive acclaim for their first
published novel? The number
must be minute. Even so,
Saturday Review described
Almost Famous as a “languid,
bluesy novel,” and called it
“stunning” and “elegantly
crafted.” Publishers Weekly
said it was “splendid, compell
ing.” The book has also been
praised by two noted American
writers, Walker Percey— who
described it as “strong, honest,
well-crafted”— and Wright
Morris who said that Small was
“a writer who deserves
readers.”
Capitol Campus’ own library
head, Charles Townley, calls it,
“Quality work,” and said the
novel should lead to more of a
national recognition.
The author is happy with his
work and current home. He
doesn’t feel that living in Camp
Hill will hurt his creativity. “On
the contrary,” he says, “I
believe it’s a plus. I don’t want
to be a celebrity, I want to be a
writer, and Camp Hill is a quiet
community, and a perfect en
vironment to raise my son.”
Since 1963 Small has worked
as a teacher, radio announcer,
and for the federal government.
He currently works for the Pen
nsylvania Medical Society as
Associate Executive Vice Presi
dent.
Last summer Small was
awarded the 1982 David R.
Sokolov Fellow for fiction at the
Breadloaf Writer’s Conference,
Middlebury, Vermont. He is
currently at work on his second
novel which, because of the suc
cess of his first book, also
deserves readers.
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