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The book follows three generations of Olympic athletes over eight decades, culminating in intrigue and danger at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Brazil.
Zipes was born in White Plains and grew up in Pleasantville, where he graduated from high school in 1957. He was recognized as Pleasantville High School's Outstanding Graduate during its 50th reunion in 2007.
With some historical basis in fact and characters loosely based on real people, Zipes’ story chronicles the challenges of Olympic competition experienced by a grandfather, father, and daughter from one Jewish family.
Zipes dedicates the book to the 11 Israeli athletes and coaches taken hostage and killed by Palestinian terrorists during the 1972 Summer Olympic Games in Munich.
He credits Ankiee Spitzer, widow of one of the “Munich Eleven,” for lobbying the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to formally recognize and honor the slain, who gave their lives to their sport and their country.
“I have been in contact with Ankiee and sent her a copy of the book. She hopes the IOC will, in some way, recognize the Munich Eleven during the 2016 games in Rio,” he notes.
Zipes book also explores the non-competitive aspects of athletics, including the influence of global politics on the international Olympic Games, the roots of racism, anti-Semitism, and their modern-day legacies, speculation about whether Hitler escaped from Germany alive using priceless art and looted treasures to buy his way into Argentina, and the lasting dynamics of dark family secrets.
Zipes says he wanted to write a novel that portrayed Jews as a tough, resilient people who fight back, countering the stereotype of millions who meekly went to their deaths during the Holocaust.
For information about Doug Zipes and his newest novel “Not Just a Game,” including a free reading of the book’s first chapter, visit dougzipes.com.
Contact him at dzipes@iu.edu.
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