Touchdown Trouble

January 1, 2010
Gr 4-6-Twelve-year-old Sam's extracurricular life revolves around football. After watching a video replay of an important game, the team realizes that its winning score was made inadvertently on an illegal fifth down. Bowen uses historical eventsa game between Cornell and Dartmouth played in 1940to anchor the plot realistically. This device will resonate with readers as it imparts an actual dilemma and conclusion without moralistic advice. They will feel the players' emotions when the Cowboys have to make an important decision based on an honest mistake by an official. This book can be used as an excellent opportunity for a group discussion and will be a fine addition to other popular play-by-play sports chapter books."Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA"

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