It's Super Bowl Sunday!

So, once again, no the Bears are not playing in the big game.  If you are not going to be cheering for the Giants or the Patriots, why not pick up one of these books that center on football:

	Stupid Fastby Geoff Herbach Just before his sixteenth birthday, Felton Reinstein has a sudden growth spurt that turns him from a small, jumpy, picked-on boy with the nickname of "Squirrel Nut" to a powerful athlete, leading to new friends, his first love, and the courage to confront his family's problems.
	Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally Jordan Woods leads her high school football team as the captain and quarterback. Her teammates all see her as one of the guys, and that's just fine. As long as she gets her athletic scholarship. But now there's a new guy in town who threatens her starting position--suddenly she's hoping he'll see her as more than just a teammate.
	Cover-Up by John Feinstein THE SUPER BOWL. America's biggest sports spectacle. More than 95 million fans will be watching, but Steve Thomas and Susan Carol Anderson know that what they'll be watching is a lie. They know that the entire offensive line of the California Dreams have failed their doping tests and that the Dreams' owner is trying to cover up the test results. These two teens are sitting on the biggest sports scandal of the decade. What they don't know , yet, is how to prove it.

Click here for the complete list!

posted by Colleen, Teen Services Librarian

The Big Field reviewed by Nick

The Big Field

by Mike Lupica

The Big Field by Mike Lupica tells about a boy who has a dream of playing shortstop at the big field where the Cards and Marlins play their spring-training games. Well, half of that happens. He gets to play at the big field, but not at shortstop. His new teammate Darryl takes care of that at shortstop. This is a great book if you enjoy suspense and a little comedy.

review submitted by Nick

Leverage by Joshua Cohen

Recommended for 9th grade and up-

The brutal, intense, harsh world of..football..gymnastics..bullying...horrible secrets..meeting expectations.. Joshua Cohen pulls together all of those things in excellent but painfully harsh at times read.  Leverage throws you into the world of Danny and Kurt, two completely different guys or maybe not so different.  Danny is small athletic and dreams about getting himself a full ride to college for gymnastics. His moves on the uneven bars make audiences gasp.  Kurt is a beast, a football playing beast, who was recruited from another high school by his coach. But Kurt has much more to him, a nightmarish past and a future that greatly depends on his success in his new spot on the hardcore  and hard hitting Oregrove Knight’s high school football team.  A team with some members, pumped full of steroids, who bully and brutalize the seemingly small and weak, and when this bullying goes beyond just teasing to terrible cruelness and evil Danny and Kurt find themselves coping with the terrible repercussions and a unlikely friendship that helps them through it. 

Reviewed by Renee, Teen Outreach Librarian

Soul Surfer tie-in

The movie Soul Surfer hits theaters tomorrow.  It is the true story of the surfer Bethany Hamilton, who lost her arm at 13 years old when a 14 foot tiger shark attacked her.

Here's the trailer for the movie:

 

Stop by the Library and check out the books Soul Surfer: a true story of faith, family, and fighting to get back on the board by Bethany Hamilton and Shark Girl by Kelly Bingham.  Soul Surfer is Hamilton's own account of the attack, what led up to it and how she overcame the loss of her arm.  Shark Girl by Kelly Bingham was actually written before Bethany was attacked and she attracted national media attention.  As the author, Kelly Bingham, explains here she had just finished her first draft of the book when Bethany was attacked, so she shelved the manuscript and almost never revisited it.  A year later she revised the manuscript and sold it in 2006.  It is also cool to note that Shark Girl is a novel in verse (a great way to celebrate National Poetry month!).

posted by Colleen, Teen Services Librarian

Get into the Game--Baseball Fiction

Baseball season is officially here! Some (including me) say that it is the most wonderful season there is. 

Check out some of these Teen novels centered on baseball, on display now at the Library:

High Heat by Carl Deuker
Shane's life comes crashing down when his father is arrested for money laundering and commits suicide.  Shane lived a privileged life that revolved around baseball so when he, his mom, and his sister are forced to move to a small apartment and live in virtual poverty, Shane rebels.  He's arrested for stealing and as part of his probation Shane has to work on repairing a local baseball field and he slowly rediscovers his love for baseball.

The Comeback Season by Jennifer E. Smith
Ryan is a Cubs fan thanks to her father, who passed away when she was 10.  So, when she skips school to attend the opening day game and meets Nick, a fellow Cubs fan, an intense relationship blossoms.  Ryan's world comes crashing down, though, when she learns that Nick is terminally ill.

Samurai Shortstop by Alan Gratz
It is 1890 and Toyo is attending an elite boarding school in Japan.  Toyo comes from a family of samurai and is trained as such; however the emperor has outlawed the samurai practices.  Struggling to fit in at school and maintain his samurai heritage, Toyo finds solace in a new sport, baseball.

Mexican Whiteboy by Matt de la Pena
Danny is half white and half Mexican and attends a predominantly white private school in San Diego County where he definitely does not fit in.  However, one summer he decides to stay with his father's family in National City just across the border.  It is there that Danny finds friendship and that he has a great talent for pitching.

Center Field by Robert Lipsyte
Mike wants nothing more than to play baseball in the center field position.  However, a new kid at school threatens his position on the team.  Combined with other problems at home and with his girlfriend, Mike's life spirals out of control and he gets in trouble at school.  Forced to do community service with the Cyber Club and sit the bench, Mike begins to learn that there's more about his center field replacement than the school is letting on.

Change-Up by John Feinstein
While covering the World Series game, two teenaged reporters discover that the star rookie pitcher has changed his life story when the details of a tragic incident change from his earlier interviews.  The two reporters are faced with the dilemma to uncover the truth and expose the pitcher's secrets.

Click here for a more complete list of titles.

Also, check out some of these classic baseball movies at the Library:

The Natural
I can hear the theme music now, as Roy Hobbs hits the game winning home run into the lights.  This is definitely my favorite baseball movie!

The Rookie
This movie is based on the real life Jim Morris who had a brief 2 seasons in the big leagues, but whose story made him famous.

For Love of the Game
A romantic spin on the game of baseball.
 
The Bad News Bears
A girl who may be the best pitcher around and a guy who is a motorcycle riding trouble maker who just happens to be the best athlete in town—this is a classic if for nothing else than Walter Matthau as Coach Buttermaker.

A League of Their Own
"There's no crying in baseball!"  This film is another one of my favorites, with classic performances by Tom Hanks and Geena Davis.

The Pride of the Yankees
This is the 1942 biographical film about Lou Gehrig, played by Gary Cooper. 

Field of Dreams
"If you build it, he will come..."  most commonly misquoted as “If you build it, they will come…”

posted by Colleen, Teen Services Librarian

Superbowl Sunday

No, the Bears will not be in the Super Bowl this Sunday.  So, either you are a Packers fan, a Steelers fan, or none of the above and just watching the game for the commercials and half time show.  To celebrate the big game, check out some of the teen novels below at the Library.  Each title has something to do with football, and would be a good read this weekend while you're watching the game... or not watching the game.

Love, Football, and Other Contact Sports by Alden R. Carter
YA SS Carter, A.
Roughnecks by Thomas Cochran
YA Cochran, T.
The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier
YA Cormier, R.
Crackback by John Coy
YA Coy, J.
Gym Candy by Carl Deuker
YA Deuker, C.
Payback Time by Carl Deuker
YA Deuker, C.
Cover-Up by John Feinstein
YA MY Feinstein, J.
Out of His League by Pat Flynn
YA Flynn, P.
Damage by A. M. Jenkins
YA Jenkins, A.
Pop by Gordon Korman
YA Korman, G.
Raiders Nightby Robert Lipsyte
YA Lipsyte, R.
Shooting Star by Robert McKissack, Jr.
YA McKissack, F.
Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
YA Murdock, C.
Troy High by Shana Norris
YA Norris, S.
Derailed by John Ripslinger
YA Ripslinger, J.
Juice by Eric Walters
YA Walters, E.
Food, Girls, and Other Things I Can't Have by Allen Zadoff
YA Zadoff, A.

posted by Colleen, Teen Services Librarian