by Janet Nichols Lynch ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2012
It’s an uphill climb, one that will leave many readers stranded on the side.
For 18-year-old Evan Boroughs the chance to sign with a major cycling team comes as an incredible opportunity.
Joining the Image Craft-Icon team gives Evan the chance to compete in the Tour of California with his cycling icon, Dashiell Shipley, as the tour winds from Sacramento to Thousand Oaks. Evan still tries to make time for finishing his senior year, for his mom’s undiagnosed sickness and for his girlfriend Glory despite the rigors of the race, but he quickly finds he is stretched to the limit. When his hero tests positive for drug use, Evan must evaluate his place in the cycling world. With a bit more gross-out humor, Lynch’s narrative could nearly be mistaken for a Chris Crutcher novel, albeit one about an incredibly narrow subject. Potentially exciting moments fail to materialize due to cycling jargon and too-generic descriptions of roads, hills and spinning wheels. Cycling terminology is defined in the narrative rather than in a separate glossary, and that additional weight slows the pace. While Evan has depth, the other characters appear and vanish too quickly to leave an impression.
It’s an uphill climb, one that will leave many readers stranded on the side. (Fiction. 12-16)Pub Date: April 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8234-2363-7
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Feb. 21, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2012
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by Lauren Morrill ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 7, 2014
A thoughtful reminder that it is difficult to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes—or in this case, skates.
An on-ice case of traded identities.
When Sloane Emily Jacobs, the competitive figure skater from Washington, D.C., literally bumps into Sloane Devon Jacobs, the hockey jock from Philadelphia, the teens see it as more than a freaky coincidence; it’s an opportunity. The chance meeting happens in a Montreal hotel lobby the evening before each teen is to report to an intensive sports camp for her own discipline. However, both girls are dreading their camps, which prompts Sloane Emily to suggest an identity swap. Hilarity ensues as Sloane Emily foregoes leotards and spins for body checking and slap shots, and Sloane Devon adopts toe picks and tights, leaving her sweatpants and swagger behind. Chapters alternate between Sloane Emily’s and Sloane Devon’s perspectives, giving each teen her own voice, personality and the space to unpack her heavy baggage from home, which includes family scandal, parental substance abuse and anger management issues. Although it feels far-fetched in some sections and certain small details of the identity switch don’t quite line up, the two strong teens carry the text, providing an enjoyable, on-ice adventure.
A thoughtful reminder that it is difficult to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes—or in this case, skates. (Fiction. 12-16)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-385-74179-8
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Nov. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2013
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by Warren St. John ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 11, 2012
An uplifting underdog story that will appeal to readers interested in the immigrant experience and the surprising role...
An inspiring account of a young Jordanian immigrant who created Fugees, a soccer program for refugees from war-torn nations.
Adapted from an adult book of the same title, St. John tells the story of how Luma Mufleh formed a soccer team composed of young refugees from all over the world, rescued by the U.N. High Commission for Refugees and living together in a crime-ridden settlement in suburban Atlanta. After seeing refugee children playing soccer in vacant lots around town, Mufleh persuaded the local YMCA to fund a free soccer program and signed on as its unpaid coach. The children she recruited came from such war-ravaged countries as Liberia, Sudan, Zaire, Kosovo and Afghanistan. The team offered youngsters traumatized by civil war and genocide the chance to enjoy a familiar recreation and an alternative to gangs. In addition to coaching, Mufleh often acted as counselor and surrogate parent to children whose own parents worked long hours. Though insightful about immigration and the challenges of assimilation, the fast-paced account lacks sufficient detail about the experiences that forced the players to leave their home countries.
An uplifting underdog story that will appeal to readers interested in the immigrant experience and the surprising role sports can play in people’s lives. (Nonfiction. 12-16)Pub Date: Sept. 11, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-385-74194-1
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: July 21, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
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