February 1, 2017
Gr 3-6-Richie Mallon is a shooter. He has known this since the day he realized he had an inherent love of and talent for basketball. The swish of the ball hitting the net and the pleasure of scoring the most points in a game are all that matter to him. While trying out for the basketball team during his eighth grade year at Plaza Middle School, Richie is confident that his shooting ability is not only enough to get him on the team but also all he needs to be the team's go-to guy for every win. When challenged by his coach and others to think about every aspect of the game, Richie feels a bit discouraged but soon discovers that basketball is about more than scoring points. It is also what happens off the court that counts. Bowen has again written a sports story that is purely and simply about the love of the game. Smartly using sports terminology and internal monologue from the protagonist's point of view, this latest novel is bound to engage and entertain young readers who double as basketball players and/or fans.
Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
January 1, 2018
After rigorous tryouts, Richie Mallon makes the middle-school basketball team under a new coach. Richie's unembellished first-person narrative traces his development over the season, from egocentric jump-shooter to a cooperative team player who passes, rebounds, and plays good defense. The feel-good if message-heavy sports story includes a final postscript discussing history of the jump-shot and great real-life shooters.
(Copyright 2018 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)