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An entertaining look at the meteoric rise of pickleball and one player’s joyful obsession with the game Just One More Game is Frank’s account of abandoning herself to a sport loved by millions (and hated by plenty of others). As she tries to understand its hold on America and herself, Frank takes readers far and wide, from PickleCon to Pickle Palooza, into the sport’s roots and its viral rise, and along on her quixotic quest to qualify for the pickelballing big-time. Pickleball is the fastest-growing sport in North America and has been for some time. In 2017, there were 3 million avid players in the United States, and by 2023, that number had grown to 13.6 million. With over 68,000 courts across the country, a burgeoning professional league, and the sport targeting the 2032 Olympics, it shows no sign of slowing down. The game was born in Washington State in 1965, and so was author Clare Frank, but she didn’t encounter the game until 2021, when she got roped into joining a neighborhood friend’s game. Despite being mystified by the court dimensions, the equipment, and especially the lingo (whose kitchen was being violated?), it wasn’t long before the retired firefighter’s competitive drive kicked in. And then she was in deep: joining “underground” games, shaking off injuries, playing in local tournaments, and traveling to Mexico for clinics. This fun read will be welcomed by pickleballers old and new.
About the author
After 30 years in the fire service,
Clare Frank retired as California’s first female chief of fire protection and launched her writing career. Her debut book,
Burnt: A Memoir of Fighting Fire (Abrams Press, 2023), was long-listed for the 2023 Outstanding Works of Literature Awards and received critical acclaim from the
San Francisco Chronicle, Kirkus Reviews, Christian Science Monitor, Library Journal, Shelf Awareness, Booklist, New York Post, Shondaland’s Head Turners, and more. Frank has also written for the
New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, CNN Opinion, FireRescue1, and others. She holds a BS in fire administration, an MFA in creative writing, and a Juris doctorate. She is a seasoned public speaker and is on faculty for the University of Nevada at Tahoe’s MFA program. Frank lives on the eastern front of the Sierra-Nevada Mountains with her husband and always a dog or two.
