by Carl Deuker ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1997
For Ryan Ward, 17, the baseball diamond leads to much more than just a winning season in this exciting and moving novel from Deuker (Heart of a Champion, 1993, etc.). Until Josh Daniels and his family move in across the street during the summer, Ryan seems destined for mediocrity at Seattle's Crown Hill High. Eager for a friend, Ryan tags after the charismatic, athletically gifted Josh, a pitcher; while they play catch, Ryan realizes that he enjoys catching and thinks of trying out for the varsity team. But Ryan's plans are put on hold when autumn rolls around and Josh concentrates on the football team. Throughout the novel, his single-minded, nearly ruthless ambition is shown as the opposite of Ryan's nagging insecurities. The image of himself as Josh's toady drives Ryan to begin working out months before baseball season. Josh's careful maneuvering during practice shows Ryan at his best, and he makes the varsity cut; the team's unprecedented success is achieved largely through the symbiosis between the boys as pitcher and catcher. There the connection ends: Josh, master of high school politics, grows more arrogant while Ryan blossoms with newfound confidence. A championship season seems clinched until Josh, in a wolf mask, assaults a female classmate who has embarrassed him. Ryan interrupts the assault and recognizes Josh. Deuker, adept at capturing the thrills during the game, also proves talented at dramatizing Ryan's torment in the face of his friend's deeds; the depiction of a boy coming into his own is resonant and inspiring. (Fiction. 12+)
Pub Date: April 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-395-82848-1
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1997
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by Jerry Pallotta ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 1, 2000
Who is next in the ocean food chain? Pallotta has a surprising answer in this picture book glimpse of one curious boy. Danny, fascinated by plankton, takes his dory and rows out into the ocean, where he sees shrimp eating those plankton, fish sand eels eating shrimp, mackerel eating fish sand eels, bluefish chasing mackerel, tuna after bluefish, and killer whales after tuna. When an enormous humpbacked whale arrives on the scene, Danny’s dory tips over and he has to swim for a large rock or become—he worries’someone’s lunch. Surreal acrylic illustrations in vivid blues and red extend the story of a small boy, a small boat, and a vast ocean, in which the laws of the food chain are paramount. That the boy has been bathtub-bound during this entire imaginative foray doesn’t diminish the suspense, and the facts Pallotta presents are solidly researched. A charming fish tale about the one—the boy—that got away. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-88106-075-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2000
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by Jerry Pallotta & Sammie Garnett ; illustrated by Vickie Fraser
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by Margaret Blackstone ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1999
As two young teams face off, a spare, staccato text relates the ever-changing action on the soccer field. Blackstone starts with the basics: “This is a soccer ball. This is a cleat. And this is a soccer player.” Next, she emphasizes the fancy footwork involved and introduces the teams. Then comes the kickoff, and some “running and jumping, bumping and sliding, . . . dribble, pass, pass, dribble, faster, faster, dribble, pass—KICK! This is an overhead shot.” With a potential goal, the goalie launches himself into space trying to catch the ball, the crowd goes wild, and the ball lands in the net. Blackstone (This Is Maine, 1995, etc.) emphasizes that there’s always more shooting than scoring in soccer; sometimes the final score is “zero to zero.” O’Brien’s illustrations capture the feeling of full-tilt playing, showing quick turns and sudden stops, moving in for close-ups and backing up for a distant pan of the whole field. In a humorous visual subplot, an unperturbed fan sets out his lawn chair on the title page and sleeps through the entire game. It’s a bonus in an already inviting introduction to the fast-paced and fleet-footed game of soccer. (Picture book. 6-10)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-8050-2801-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1999
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by Margaret Blackstone & illustrated by John Segal
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