End Zone

In West Texas, college men play football with intense passion. During a winning season the running back, Gary Harkness, is fuelled by fear of, and fascination with, nuclear conflict. Among players the terminologies of football and nuclear war - the language of end zones - become interchanged.

At Logos College in West Texas, huge young men, vacuum-packed into shoulder pads and shiny helmets, play football with intense passion. During an uncharacteristic winning season, the perplexed and distracted running back Gary Harkness has periodic fits of nuclear glee; he is fueled and shielded by his fear of and fascination with nuclear conflict. Among oddly afflicted and recognizable players, the terminologies of football and nuclear war—the language of end zones—become interchangeable, and their meaning deteriorates as the collegiate year runs its course. In this triumphantly funny, deeply searching novel, Don DeLillo explores the metaphor of football as war with rich, original zeal.

Don DeLillo was awarded the 1999 Jerusalem prize, recognizing a writer who addresses individual freedom in society.

A darkly funny satire of human nature and American college football, set against the backdrop of the Cold War, by the author of the National Book Award–winning novel White NoiseAt Logos College in West Texas, huge young men, vacuum-packed into shoulder pads and shiny helmets, play football with intense passion. During an uncharacteristic winning season, the perplexed and distracted running back Gary Harkness has periodic fits of nuclear glee, fueled by his fear of and fascination with nuclear conflict. As the line between football and nuclear warfare blurs, the actions of the players become unorthodox and even bizarre, reflecting the disconcerting reality of a world teetering on the brink of destruction. In this triumphantly funny, deeply searching novel, Don DeLillo explores the metaphor of football as war with rich, original zeal. Several young men in pursuit of different dreams find themselves drawn together in their desire to play football at a small college in a remote part of Texas during the Cold War