Heart of a Champion by: Carl Deuker

       Seth is at the park, and meets his future best friend Jimmy. What he notices is Jimmy's baseball talent, everything with him is instinctful. He can catch a thrown baseball with the flick of a glove, and is a batter much above his level. Everything about Jimmy shows future superstar at the Major Leagues. Unfortunetly, Jimmy one day moves away. However, all that changes about Jimmy, when they enter high school. Seth is now on the baseball team with another star, Todd. Todd is a great player, but has a terrible attitude towards his teamates. Due to that, Seth's team is still performing at a very low level. But one day, Jimmy has moved back, is going to the same high school as Seth, and has made the baseball team after he tried out. Seth's team barely scrapes by into the playoffs, and wind up making the championship game, but Jimmy and Todd have been suspended for the game due to drinking. Could this be the big turnaround of Jimmy and Seth's lives?

       I thought this was an excellent book, for a few reasons. One of those, was that it was centered around one of my favorite sports, baseball. Plus, baseball contributes to a major piece of this story, as it would be nothing like it really is without baseball. Another reason I liked it was because it had a powerful message in it, and that is to stay away from alcohol, as that message changes the whole complexion of the story. Finally, for the last piece I'll share, the characters were very unique in themselves, as Jimmy was a tremendous sports player, although he had character issues. Sean on the other hand, was an above average high school player, although he knew how to handle himself. Overall, this was my favorite book I read this year, as it perfectly combines sports and teenager issues all in one.

 





Mert Y.
Spicer
Periods 4/6