TOUGHSKINS

TOUGHSKINS
William Masswa

John and Bret, two twenty-something athletes who separately endured abuse in their pasts, do what they know – they beat up themselves and each other in the wrestling league – until one boy turns their lives around with the question, “Why do you hurt each other?” Tender moments unfold for John and Bret, and the rookies are also brought together by a ragtag team of oddball wrestlers who know what all boys know: deep down, we all just want to be held.

264 pages, paperback