{"product_id":"finding-the-game-three-years-twenty-five-countries-and-the-search-for-pickup-soccer-9781250002044","title":"Finding the Game: Three Years, Twenty-Five Countries, and the Search for Pickup Soccer","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eAcross two dozen countries--from back alleys to remote beaches to the roofs of skyscrapers--an eye-opening journey into the heart of soccer\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eEvery country has a different term for it: In the United States it's \"pickup.\" In Trinidad it's \"taking a sweat.\" In Brazil it's \"pelada\" (literally \"naked\"). It's the other side of soccer, those spontaneous matches played away from the bright lights and manicured fields--the game for anyone, anywhere. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAt sixteen, Gwendolyn Oxenham was the youngest Division I athlete in NCAA history, a starter and leading goal-scorer for Duke. At twenty, she graduated, the women's professional soccer league folded, and her career was over. In \u003ci\u003eFinding the Game, \u003c\/i\u003e Oxenham, along with her boyfriend and two friends, chases the part of the game that outlasts a career. They bribe their way into a Bolivian prison, bet shillings on a game with moonshine brewers in Kenya, play with women in hijab on a court in Tehran--and discover what the world looks like when you wander down side streets, holding on to a ball. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAn entertaining, heartfelt look at the soul of a sport and a thrilling travel narrative, this book is proof that on the field and in life, some things need no translation.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eGWENDOLYN OXENHAM received an MFA in creative writing from the University of Notre Dame, where she was awarded the Nicholas Sparks post-graduate fellowship. A Duke University soccer alum, she played professionally for Santos FC in Brazil in 2005. She teaches English and plays in pickup games in Southern California.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"St. Martins Press-3PL","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50848981582098,"sku":"9781250002044","price":26.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_73990d4a-ceef-4649-ae22-87620a78cba3.jpg?v=1737385728","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/finding-the-game-three-years-twenty-five-countries-and-the-search-for-pickup-soccer-9781250002044","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}