Tennis Talk of a Nobody

Gail Wilson Kenna's Tennis Talk of a Nobody is an insightful account of the author's lifelong passion for tennis. Gail began playing competitive tennis at ten. Now in her eighties, she remains an active, committed player, who also teaches literature and writes books. "Warm-up" begins with Emily Dickinson's famous poem, followed by three sets of compelling narratives, old photos, and newspaper clippings. Kenna uses the game of tennis to reveal mysteries of chance and circumstance. Like the strings of a tennis racquet, connections and synchronicity have woven her life's path. Cut the strings and everything changes.

What were the chances Gail would play poker with Arthur Ashe in 1964, a game of chance? That later both Arthur and her father, Robert T. Wilson, would have heart surgeries, receive HIV infected blood, and die from it. What were the chances earlier in 1960, that Gail would fall and break five bones in her left foot at the National Hardcourt championships? Never had she fallen on a tennis court. Billie Jean Moffit was in the stands that day, and Gail's book includes a letter to the now famous BJ King, who was once a tennis foe.