Keeper: Home Run Edition

VOYA

Sasha Lewis is afraid of everything from clowns to string cheese. She lives with her grandmother, who loves Sasha but keeps the curtains drawn and goes out only when absolutely necessary. Courtney, Sasha's best friend since kindergarten, persistently drags, pushes, teases, and laughs Sasha into a relatively normal childhood. By eighth grade, it is becoming hard for Courtney, a jock, to understand why Sasha will not join her in the sports she loves. Courtney tricks Sasha into training for the soccer team and apparently tells the coach that she and Sasha are a package deal. Sasha, to her horror, makes the team. She becomes the third-string goalie, safe, she presumes, from ever playing. In a big game, however, facing her nemesis, Ashley, Sasha is called on to block the penalty kick. Sloan creates memorable characters but tucks them into a story in which serious problems are too easily solved by the youth. Her "just get over it" solution for Sasha's fears does not consider the complexities of mental illness. Better editing, along with eliminating some inconsistencies, might have helped lessen the severity of Sasha's concerns, making her soccer success more plausible. She also might have better led the reader to the unexpected tragedy at the conclusion. VOYA Codes: 2Q 3P M (Better editing or work by the author might have warranted a 3Q; Will appeal with pushing; Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8). 2002, Scobre Press, 146p,
— Lynne Hawkins

School Library Journal

Gr 5-8-Sasha, an eighth grader, has a long list of people, animals, things, and events that terrify her. Her friend Courtney is the complete opposite and pushes Sasha to be more daring, especially when it comes to sports. After basketball tryouts are a disaster for her, she is tricked into giving soccer a try. Being coached by a gorgeous young Hungarian is definitely a plus and suddenly Sasha finds herself as third-string goalie for her school's team. Readers come to know the protagonist as a complete person. She has lived with her elderly, eccentric grandmother since her mother abandoned her as a baby. She has an interesting assortment of friends and acquaintances and for all her fears is a rather self-sufficient person. The story moves at the breakneck pace of a soccer game with short chapters and lots of action both on and off the field. However, the author has tried to cram too much into the final chapters. Still, soccer players will enjoy the book. A concluding section called "Test Yourself-Are You a Professional Reader?" poses chapter-by-chapter questions about the story and gives ideas for essays; they could be used to evaluate reading comprehension or as discussion starters.-Nancy P. Reeder, Heathwood Hall Episcopal School, Columbia, SC Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.