Raider’s
Night by Robert Lipsyte
The award-winning author of "The Contender"
delivers an absorbing, eye-opening glimpse into the increasingly
high-stakes world of high school football, where everyone--coaches,
parents, and players--knows that winning really is the
only option, no matter the cost.
Juice
by Eric Walters
When a division one coach comes to their smaller school
to bring the football program up to contender status,
Moose and the rest of the players on the team are pumped.
Coach Barnes has new ideas and a vision for the future--nothing
is too good for his players. With a new training regimen,
everything seems to be on a winning track. But when Moose
and others are offered steroids, tempers start to fray
and the teammates have to decide whose side they are on.
"Juice is a compelling story about the pressures
and temptations that are faced by many in the competitive
world of high school athletics.
Life,
Love, and the Pursuit of Free Throws / Janette Rallison
Josie loves hottie Ethan Lancaster, the captain of the
basketball team, but she never can do or say the right
thing in front of him. So how can it be fair that Ethan
is only interested in her best friend, Cami, when Cami
isn't even trying for his affection? Or is she? Cami dreams
of winning her basketball team's coveted MVP award, and
earning the chance to take the court during a special
halftime demonstration with WNBA star Rebecca Lobo, but
her best friend, Josie, is a better player. So how can
it be fair that Josie is a shoo-in for the honor if she
is barely interested in basketball in the first place
and isn't even trying to be the best? Or is she? Told
from two points of view, this novel of freshman life,
love, and the pursuit of free throws displays the same
delightful humor as "Playing the Field "and
"All's Fair in Love, War, and High School."
Open
Ice by Pat Hughes
NICKY TAG! NICKY TAG! All his life, crowds have been cheering
for Nick Taglio. He's been skating since he could walk,
scoring goals since he picked up a hockey stick. He's
only a sophomore but he rules the ice, because Nicky Tag's
a fighter. Which means you have to take some hits; concussions
come with the territory. When he gets another head injury,
his doctor, his parents, and his coach tell him he can
never play again. Too dangerous, they say. He can't risk
his future. But they don't understand that without hockey,
Nick has no future. It's not a game, it's his life. And
nobody can stop him from playing.
Shakespeare
Bats Clean-Up by Ron Koertge
Written in free verse with examples of several poetic
forms slipped into the mix, this funny, poignant story
by a master of dialogue tells of a straight-talking 14-year-old
first baseman, benched by mono, who takes a swing at writing
poetry.
Dairy
Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Welcome to the summer that 15-year-old D.J. Schwenk of
Red Bend, Wisconsin, learns to talk--and ends up having
an awful lot of stuff to say. She realizes when people
don't talk, much remains unsaid, like why her best friend,
Amber, isn't so friendly anymore. Or why her little brother,
Curtis, never opens his mouth. Houghton Mifflin
Samurai
Shortstop by Alan Gratz
At its heart a novel about a boy who loves baseball, this
suspenseful tale is about a boy who must choose between
two ways of life--but finds a way to bridge them.
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