Jeff W. Bens, M.F.A. '92

A new novel by Jeff W. Bens, M.F.A. '92, "The Mighty Oak," will be published in September (hardcover, e-book and audio).

According to the review it received in Publisher's Weekly, the book's main character, a hockey player named Oak, "struggles to make a new life for himself, both in and out of the rink. Oak is deeply tragic, a man of good intentions who is dogged by bad luck and worse impulse control; the author makes his story an emotionally fraught and enriching one for the reader. Filled with memorable characters, pungent dialogue, and a lean, hard-bitten writing style, Bens’s superb novel brilliantly faces down traditional notions of manhood."

Bens, who is also the author of the novel "Albert, Himself," teaches at Manhattanville College in Purchase, N.Y. He received his M.F.A. in film and television.