The Butcher and Butterfly is now available. The book release celebration and party will be held in January (details coming soon).
Description: A wearied boxer turns his back on a chance at a world championship to search for his estranged brother in New Orleans. Trapped in a strained family relationship, a promising, young ballet dancer looks for an escape. Unexpectedly, their paths cross as they discover friendship, heartbreak, and hope in the most unlikely place.
A million thanks to Emmy Lowe for the fantastic cover art!
Available for purchase at: https://www.jimantonini.com or https://www.amazon.com/Butcher-Butterfly-Jim-Antonini/dp/B0DNXXM2L5
Background: I met the eccentric painter Noel Rockmore in early 1990 at Johnny White’s, a since-closed, infamous French Quarter dive bar, on my first visit to New Orleans. We watched a boxing match together there one evening. We had a great time. He was quite the boxing fan. In 1978, he was commissioned to paint the Muhammad Ali-Leon Spinks fight that was held in New Orleans. The now famous painting is entitled “The Fight”. He told me about his wonderful paintings, some of which hung on the walls of the bar. They were stained from years of exposure to cigarette smoke. I would meet with him again in the years before he passed. The last time I saw him we listened to Nirvana songs that he played on the jukebox repeatedly to the dismay of many of the bar regulars. He especially liked “Heart-Shaped Box.” The story behind The Butcher and the Butterfly emerged from the boozy haze of those lazy afternoons spent there.