Top Prospect

June 15, 2016
Plenty of play-by-play peppers this inside look at America's top game, with a focus on early recruitment of elite high school athletes. Way early. Following in older brother Carter's football trail brings Travis to the attention of a top coach at nearby Gainesville University. When Travis is in the seventh grade, Carter commits to Gainesville--and the coach is impressed enough with Travis to offer the 13-year-old white boy a scholarship before he starts eighth grade. Suddenly, the off-field games of media and popularity are coming full tilt at both brothers. Travis' visions of glory, his sudden need to be smart in an ESPN interview, and his struggles dealing with injury and loss are all described in Travis' narration, supplemented by Carter's quick commentary between chapters and occasional insertions of interviews and media reports. That naive Travis lacks the emotional maturity to complement the strength of his game is not surprising. An absent father who has a new family in California complicates the home scene, while the mother who has been their support and guide surprisingly never quite comes into focus. A subplot about Carter's black teammate and roommate, Alex, relies on stereotype to illustrate the underside of college ball. With an astute sense of his audience, Volponi in the end returns readers to the love of the game that should be the heart of any athlete who wants to succeed in playing at the highest level. Absorbing if flawed. (Fiction. 12-16)

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July 1, 2016

Gr 6-10-Eighth grader Travis Gardner is a standout quarterback in his Pop Warner league. Besides coping with academic struggles and making fumbling attempts at romance with best friend Damon's twin sister, Lyn, Travis also deals with his parents' divorce and a strained relationship with an absent and distant dad. Shortly after his older brother, Carter, is awarded a football scholarship to Gainesville University (a barely disguised University of Florida), Travis receives his own scholarship offer from the storied Gators coach, possibly as a distraction from an NCAA investigation. Readers follow Travis through his first season of high school football, his budding celebrity status via an ESPN appearance and a popular Twitter account, a flirtation with steroids as the result of an elbow injury, and shady interactions with a deep-pocketed Gators booster offering "money handshakes" to players. The narrative is told mostly by Travis, though brief interludes from Carter, in addition to news articles from The Gainesville Sentinel, offer different perspectives. Descriptions of the teen's games are dense with football talk and would be difficult for a nonfan to follow, though they might serve as a hook for gridiron junkies. Despite some compelling drama, the exposition is awkward at times and metaphors are often cliched ("butterflies did cartwheels inside my stomach"). An afterword relates that the novel was inspired by the stories of several middle school athletes who have been recruited by top colleges in recent years. VERDICT Purchase where there is a high interest in football and where books for reluctant readers are needed.-Bob Hassett, Luther Jackson Middle School, Falls Church, VA

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2016
Grades 5-9 Almost every kid who ever punts a football dreams about playing at the college or professional level, and competition has gotten tougher, with a few colleges actually drafting middle-school students. This is the case for Travis, a rising eighth-grader. Fast-paced action and well-written game scenarios follow Travis during a two-year period as he tries to deal with divorced parents, sibling rivalry, media attention, and the typical rigors of school and social life. When events turn darka fellow athlete dies during practice, and a college booster offers Travis steroidsTravis turns to his older brother, who vigorously comes to his aid, resulting in the collapse of their college plans but also the redirection of both boys' lives. Travis' first-person narrative is interspersed with brief interludes from his brother and occasional newspaper articles. Travis' love for the game and simultaneous confusion over the pressure to win at all costs seems absolutely authentic. This engaging read will resonate with middle schoolers, especially aspiring athletes, and accompanying publicity should generate considerable buzz.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)