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Lynn Ames

Bright Lights of Summer Paperback – November 12, 2014

by Lynn Ames (Author)

4.5 172 ratings

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It's March, 1941. Captain America appears in a comic book for the very first time. New York City receives 18.1 inches of snow, its 3rd largest snowfall in history. In Holland, the Nazi occupiers forbid Jews to own businesses. In Poland, Heinrich Himmler inspects Auschwitz. World War II is raging in Europe, but America has yet to enter the fray.

And in Phoenix, Arizona, a 16-year-old scrap of a girl named Theodora "Dizzy" Hosler, takes the field to try out for the World Champion P.B.S.W. Ramblers softball team.

Set against the backdrop of perhaps the most dramatic time in US history, comes the story of Diz and Frannie, two women fueled by an unquenchable passion for the game of softball and feelings for each other that go far beyond the bounds of friendship. Will their love for the game bring them closer together or tear them apart?

Print length

286 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Phoenix Rising Press
Publication date

November 12, 2014
Dimensions

5.5 x 0.6 x 8.5 inches
ISBN-10

1936429101
ISBN-13

978-1936429103
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Editorial Reviews

Review

From Curve Magazine: 
"Bright Lights of Summer is a delightful and nostalgic tale that brings together the love of softball and a sweetheart romance set against the backdrop of the Second World War."
 
"Lynn Ames is the queen of storytelling. She takes a setting and brings it alive for the reader. She recreates the mood, the feel - the texture of life in a bygone era for us to relive."

FROM THE LESBIAN REVIEW 
Bright Lights Of Summer by Lynn Ames is a wonderful historical romance enriched with the details and facts of the time period in which it is written. If Ames had not said it was a work of fiction, I would believe this was a true story.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Phoenix Rising Press (November 12, 2014)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 286 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1936429101
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1936429103
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.7 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.6 x 8.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,684,711 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #867 in LGBTQ+ Historical Fiction (Books)
- #5,378 in Sports Fiction (Books)
- #72,296 in Historical Romances

Customer Reviews:
4.5 172 ratings

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Lynn Ames

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Lynn Ames is the best-selling author of sixteen genre books and the biography of the greatest catcher who ever played women’s softball, Out at the Plate: The Dot Wilkinson Story (Chicago Review Press, 2023). She also is the writer/director/producer of the history-making documentary, Extra Innings. This historically important documentary chronicles, for the first time ever in her own words, the real-life story of Hall-of-Famer Dot Wilkinson and the heyday of women’s softball.

Lynn’s fiction has garnered her a multitude of awards and honors, including six Goldie awards, the coveted Ann Bannon Popular Fiction Award (for All That Lies Within), the Alice B. Medal for Lifetime Achievement, and the Arizona Book Award for Best Gay/Lesbian book. Lynn is a two-time Lambda Literary Award (Lammy) finalist, a Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Award finalist, a Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards Honorable Mention winner, and winner of several Rainbow Reader Awards. All That Lies Within was additionally honored as one of the top ten lesbian books overall of 2013.

Lynn is the founder of Phoenix Rising Press. She is also a former press secretary to the New York state senate minority leader and spokesperson for the nation’s third-largest prison system. For more than half a decade, she was an award-winning broadcast journalist. She has been editor of a critically acclaimed national magazine and a nationally recognized speaker and public relations professional with a particular expertise in image, crisis communications planning, and crisis management.

For additional information please visit her website at www.lynnames.com, or e-mail her at lynnamesauthor@gmail.com. You can also friend Lynn on Facebook and follow her on YouTube and Instagram.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5

172 global ratings

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G. Ratcliff

Loads of fun... a home run!

Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2016

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OK girls, young or old(er)... Softball. Did you play? Fast pitch, slow pitch, or the dreaded (for me) arc ball? High school, college, city league, semi-pro, national? Now, remember that movie we all flocked to see about the women who played baseball while the men were away in the war?

This brings me to the latest book to make it off the bench on Team Gena's-To-Be-Read-List and darned if that book didn't hit a home run. Bright Lights of Summer by Lynn Ames is fun, fun, fun. In present times, a young woman interviews an older woman (and ex-player) about the women's softball leagues of the 40s, about the women who played, and about being gay back then. As the older woman shares her story, we are taken back in time; we get to watch those games and get a up close look how life was in those days. Lynn's historical research is spot on, the fiction threaded neatly through it all. If you were a player or a fan, pick this gem up. I was thinking so much about playing, my old catcher's knees were aching.

Reviewed in the United States on January 24, 2015

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This was clearly a labor of love; both of women's softball and love between women. A touching romance unfolded in the form of a present day journalist interviewing one of the last survivors of the American Women's Softball League. Chapters loosely alternate between present day exchanges between these two, and the experiences of Diz (the survivor) and her lover in the early 40's. From eager young Theodora (Diz) wanting nothing more than to play softball like her sister, to meeting Frannie and all that transpires between the two, the story is a delight. The details about World War II and the WASPS, Wrigley's Professional Women's Baseball League and many other historical occurrences seemed well researched and were fascinating. I couldn't put it down and would recommend it to anyone. Fans of Ms Ames other books will be tickled to notice the nod to characters from her earlier romance novel "Eyes on the Stars".

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Winnie

Awesome story!!!

Reviewed in the United States on February 13, 2015

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10 stars really--I LOVED this book! I identified so much with the ball players. The whole story and tone stayed true to the times. One really big issue I have tho--THERE HAS TO BE A SEQUEL, A CONTINUATION of this story!!! HAS to be. What happened to Dot? What happened to Frannie and Diz? How long did they play ball, then what did they do? What happened to women's softball--how much longer did it exist as it was then? How did it die, or did it just evolve into something different? Cuz there's softball and national tournaments today, but it doesn't seem the same. How hard for a woman to love another woman in earlier times. What a great story!

Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2018

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GREAT STORY ABOUT THE LADIES OF SOFTBALL IN THE TRUE LIGHT OF DAY. MADE ME PROUD TO HAVE EVER PLAYED SOFTBALL. MS. AMES WEAVE BETWEEN FICTION AND FACT IS SPELL BINDING . DIZ AND FANNIE COULD HAVE BEEN MY NEXT DOOR NEIGHBORS WHEN I WAS GROWING UP. BEING UNDER THE LIGHTS OF THE DIAMOND WAS OF THE MOST THRILLING THINGS IN MY CHILDHOOD. I COULD WELL RELATE TO THE SPELL OF THE GAME.

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dragonlady229

Well researched labor of love.

Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2015

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Lynn Ames has written a homage to the softball leagues of yesteryear when the world was at war and women stepped up to do their part. I loved the original characters woven in among the real-life ball players. The jumps back and forth in time were relatively seamless and easy to follow. I simply loved this book and its story and pretty much read it in all in one night. I couldn't put it down once I started it. Needless to say, I give it five stars and recommend Bright Lights of Summer to anyone who is interested in softball, the women's baseball league in the forties and a sweet romance at the heart of it all.

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Savannah

If you enjoy softball and wonder what life might have been like ...

Reviewed in the United States on August 10, 2016

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If you enjoy softball and wonder what life might have been like for two female ballplayers in love, then this is a must read. Lynn Ames had marvelous insights from a woman who was one of the best catchers in women's softball history--Dot Wilkinson, who turns 95 on October 9, 2016. In real life, Wilkinson, who played softball from 1933-1965, helped propel the Arizona Ramblers to the National Title in 1940, 1948 and 1949.

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Judy Comella

Another Home Run for Lynn Ames!

Reviewed in the United States on April 29, 2015

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If you are any type of Baseball fan this is definitely the book for you. It is wonderfully written by Lynn Ames who not only writes great literature but does extensive research prior to releasing her books. If you liked the movie "league of their own" this will become a must read over and over again for you. I'm happy to say that two of the women depicted in Miss Ames story are still alive to attest to the authenticity of this book. I know I will read it again and again.

Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2014

Verified Purchase

This is a wonderful, sweet, nostalgic look at love and life in a simpler time. I enjoyed every second of it. Bravo to Lynn Ames for giving so much heft and heart to a story that delights as much as it informs. You don't have to be a softball fan to enjoy this tale—winning and losing are eternal themes that resonate in life as much as they do on the playing fields, and both are here presented with care, finesse, insight, and a lot of heart. Do yourself a favor and read this book.

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Hope Freed, UK

A tribute to softball...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 24, 2021

Verified Purchase

This is a decently done historical romance which also serves as a tribute to softball (not a game we Brits play). Some of the game techniques passed me by and the romance lacked a little something (I wanted more detail than we got - not explicit sex but, for example, more background on whether Diz’s mother & sister ever worked out the true nature of Diz and Frannie’s relationship and their reactions). But the ‘telling of our story’ was nicely done and I enjoyed the solving of a little mystery near the end. There’s a nod to another of Lynn Ames historical romances ‘Eyes on the Stars’ too...

Sandra h.h

Very good

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 17, 2022

Verified Purchase

Awesome worth-while book about both softball in the 50’s and 60’s and life as a lesbian in a world where it was seen as wrong.

C. Parsons

A Home Run!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 14, 2015

Verified Purchase

Having met and heard Ms Ames read an excerpt from 'Bright Lights of Summer' at the GCLS Conference recently I knew I had to read it. Having played softball religiously during my younger years and having had the honour of representing the US Navy in the sport I had high expectations.
Ms Ames didn't let me down. Her main characters, Diz and Frannie are electrifying as Diz takes us through their years together. The trials and tribulations they face and overcome are not only realistically written but will open the eyes of the reader. The author's relationship with Dot Wilkinson shines throughout the book. Thank you Ms Ames for this amazing historical book and congratulations again on your Goldie award for 'Bright Lights of Summer'. The book and you, definitely earned it!

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