Simplistic, but a reluctant reader–friendly fast read with positive messages about hard work and being a good teammate.
A high school senior cut from girls’ soccer becomes the football team’s new kicker.
Rather than making the varsity team with her best friend (hijabi and star player Aisha), Riley (depicted on the cover as white) finds herself cut from the JV team to make room for younger players. She has the strongest corner kick but isn’t fast enough. She pulls out of her disappointed funk when a call goes out for an open tryout for the football team’s kicker position and—after some practice adjusting kicking mechanics—she goes for it and makes the team. While a girl trying out initially surprises players and coach alike, the characters are all supportive of her, with the exception of bullying star defensive player Sean. Athletic but not a prodigy, Riley struggles with unevenness; sometimes she performs well, but she’s still picking up the technique for consistency. After some tough games—losses for which Sean holds her responsible—she must find her own confidence to play as well as she can. The bullying storyline is never directly addressed or concluded; rather, the focus is on Riley’s internal conflict. Diversity’s present in character names; aside from Aisha, the other prominent secondary character is Chava Gutierrez, the supportive quarterback. Three other titles in the Gridiron series publish simultaneously: False Start, by Paul Hoblin, and The Late Hit and Showdown, both by K.R. Coleman.
Simplistic, but a reluctant reader–friendly fast read with positive messages about hard work and being a good teammate. (Fiction. 10-16)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5124-3981-6
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Darby Creek
Review Posted Online: Aug. 20, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel,...
Adventure drags our heroine all over the map of fantasyland while giving her the opportunity to use her smarts.
Elisa—Princess Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza of Orovalle—has been chosen for Service since the day she was born, when a beam of holy light put a Godstone in her navel. She's a devout reader of holy books and is well-versed in the military strategy text Belleza Guerra, but she has been kept in ignorance of world affairs. With no warning, this fat, self-loathing princess is married off to a distant king and is embroiled in political and spiritual intrigue. War is coming, and perhaps only Elisa's Godstone—and knowledge from the Belleza Guerra—can save them. Elisa uses her untried strategic knowledge to always-good effect. With a character so smart that she doesn't have much to learn, body size is stereotypically substituted for character development. Elisa’s "mountainous" body shrivels away when she spends a month on forced march eating rat, and thus she is a better person. Still, it's wonderfully refreshing to see a heroine using her brain to win a war rather than strapping on a sword and charging into battle.
Despite the stale fat-to-curvy pattern, compelling world building with a Southern European, pseudo-Christian feel, reminiscent of Naomi Kritzer's Fires of the Faithful (2002), keeps this entry fresh. (Fantasy. 12-14)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-06-202648-4
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
A smart, timely outing.
Two teens connect through a mysterious podcast in this sophomore effort by British author Oseman (Solitaire, 2015).
Frances Janvier is a 17-year-old British-Ethiopian head girl who is so driven to get into Cambridge that she mostly forgoes friendships for schoolwork. Her only self-indulgence is listening to and creating fan art for the podcast Universe City, “a…show about a suit-wearing student detective looking for a way to escape a sci-fi, monster-infested university.” Aled Last is a quiet white boy who identifies as “partly asexual.” When Frances discovers that Aled is the secret creator of Universe City, the two embark on a passionate, platonic relationship based on their joint love of pop culture. Their bond is complicated by Aled’s controlling mother and by Frances’ previous crush on Aled’s twin sister, Carys, who ran away last year and disappeared. When Aled’s identity is accidently leaked to the Universe City fandom, he severs his relationship with Frances, leaving her questioning her Cambridge goals and determined to win back his affection, no matter what the cost. Frances’ narration is keenly intelligent; she takes mordant pleasure in using an Indian friend’s ID to get into a club despite the fact they look nothing alike: “Gotta love white people.” Though the social-media–suffused plot occasionally lags, the main characters’ realistic relationship accurately depicts current issues of gender, race, and class.
A smart, timely outing. (Fiction. 12-16)Pub Date: March 28, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-06-233571-5
Page Count: 496
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: Jan. 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2017
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