The Acolyte

Was "the touch" upon David Harper's shoulder a divine experience, or was it a figment of his imagination? David Harper is the protagonist of John T. Hitchner's novel The Acolyte. As David attempts to come to grips with that question, he must endure other challenges of youth, including bullying, alcohol, tragedy, and first love. The Acolyte enlightens the reader about contemporary yet universal questions. It is a brilliantly evocative story of the burden and strengths of friendship.

Raised in Pitman, New Jersey, John T. ＂Jack＂ Hitchner is graduate of Glassboro State College (now Rowan University), Dartmouth College, and has studied at the University of Bath in the United Kingdom. For over 35 years he taught English in New Jersey and New Hampshire public schools. He now teaches Creative Writing and Coming of Age in War and Peace at Keene State College, Keene, NH. His poetry appears in the collections Seasons and Shadows and Not Far From Here, his short fiction in How Far Away, How Near. He is the father of one son, and step-father to three daughters. He and his wife live Pat live in Keene, NH.