Book Description

Dave Smith, a proud 48 year-old African-American man in an interracial marriage, grew up poor in North Carolina, and hes poor today. But there was a time he almost had it all.... Five years earlier, seeking his share of the American Dream, Dave tried his hand at entrepreneurship and sank every penny he and his wife owned into Daves Bar, a former barbershop on Atlantas historic Auburn Avenue. The business flourished, and he believed hed finally achieved his Dream. He bought his wife, Linda, expensive presents, and sent her on luxurious vacations while he stayed behind to watch over the bar. There was little choice there, since the bars Auburn Avenue location attracted an eclectic but motley crew of customers who always required a close eye, as well as the occasional bartender who either stole or shared the bars alcoholic bounty with their family and friends. Life is marvelous, Dave thought. And life was terrific . . . until a swanky new competitor opened across the street. Within a few short months, Daves Bar became a statistic. Now, six months later, unemployed and with the big Five-O fast creeping up on him, Dave reads the want ads in the local newspaper and fends off his wifes frequent worried questions. Within four months, he quits two jobs he feels are beneath him. Money worries stress his marriage to the point of open conflict. As the bills mount, so does the tension. Linda, a Southern Belle and an assertive buxom blonde, is as supportive as shes able to be, but is fast losing patience. The manager of a staffing agency, shes the only one bringing home the bacon right now. Fed up with chiding Dave for not trying harder to find steady work, she offers him an entry-level job with her company. He doesnt want a job his wife found for him, plus he doesnt like or trust her boss, Charlie, a rich playboy Linda dated before they were married. Deeply conflicted over what life even means anymore, his marriage strained to breaking, Dave leaves to visit his family in North Carolina, hoping to find answers to the unanswerable. The Delivery Man is a coming-to-middle age story populated by eccentric, fascinating characters and a window into whether a man can reclaim the good life he once knew before its too late.