Under Pressure

June 1, 2013

Gr 6 Up-Elise just wants her mother to notice how well she is playing soccer and to stop making little digs that she thinks will motivate her. In order to live up to the expectations laid before her from her coach, her mother, and herself, she decides to look for some help. Elise knows that she shouldn't take steroids, so instead she finds some pills on the Internet that promise to enhance her performance and steals her mother's credit card to pay for them. At first the drugs work wonders, but then, combined with her lack of eating, they cause Elise to crash while a college recruiter is visiting her high school. Ultimately, drugs don't make her game any stronger; in fact, they only cause her more problems. This high-interest, slim book is an accessible read for reluctant readers and soccer fanatics.-Karen Alexander, Lake Fenton High School, Linden, MI

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2013
Soccer is everything for high school athlete Elise. Part of the Counterattack series about various teammates on a high school girls' soccer team, Berne's tale features senior Elise. In the spring season of her final year, Elise anticipates earning a place on a college team. She is thrilled to learn a scout from her parents' alma mater will be observing her team in a month, searching for potential freshman candidates. Desperate to make a stellar impression, Elise scrambles for a quick method to increase her competitive edge, naively deciding that the "Winners Athletic Supplements" she discovers are the solution. Berne examines serious issues young athletes encounter, including the tremendous pressure to succeed--whether it is self-imposed or driven by parental influence--and body-image concerns. Elise, lacking confidence in her skills and struggling with self-esteem, quickly makes a series of poor choices in her quest for instant perfection. Her anxieties further manifest in body-image issues, and she embarks on dangerously unhealthy eating patterns. Elise's deteriorating physical and emotional conditions are effectively sketched in this fast-paced, slim novel. Ultimately, events culminate in near disaster, which leads to dramatic changes in Elise's sports and life goals. Berne's discerning tale combines vivid sports descriptions with a compelling storyline. (Fiction. 12-18)

COPYRIGHT(2013) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

May 1, 2013
Grades 6-9 Elise's unhealthy desire to become a star soccer player kicks off the Counterattack series, which features members of a female high school soccer team in North Carolina and tackles the pressures of being an athlete. Even after playing soccer most of her life and coming from a long line of University of North Carolina athletes, Elise never feels as talented as the rest of her team. When a UNC scout plans to watch a practice, Elise knows she needs some extra helpand quick. After seeing several online ads for athletic supplements, she borrows her mother's credit card number to purchase a supply. They aren't steroids and no one would sell them if they weren't safe, right? Reminiscent of Orca's novels for teens, the book's short sentences and swift pacing keep reluctant readers engaged as Elise becomes obsessed with her new regimen. Her added weight-loss plan only intensifies the effects of the supplements. Though obvious from the start, the story serves as a useful warning to athletes and nonathletes alike.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)