A teenager who believes he's destined to be a tennis champ must learn to handle disillusion and shattered dreams. A powerful coming-of-age novel set on a clay court.

Alain has been playing tennis forever. With his gifts, he soon begins to dream of becoming a champion. His father also believes in his future, especially as a successful son would avenge a bitter life of mediocrity. With his coach's help, Alain works hard and develops his technique to become a pusher: a defensive player specializing in the psychological warfare of pushing back any shot he can chase down. He’s the complete opposite of his friend Eric, a brilliant player who lives and breathes elegance and panache. Deprived of such abilities and held back by his body, Alain is fated to fail. The book builds to his desperate but sublime comeback attempt as he clings to a withered dream. Written like an autobiography, Pusher precisely and sensitively details a journey punctuated by disillusionment.