Stick

June 1, 2015
Brett Patterson, the best wide receiver in the history of his high school, and Preston Underwood, a brilliant and bullied student, form an unlikely friendship in Harmon’s (Under the Bridge) empowering story about escaping guilt, embracing second thoughts, and trusting oneself. After Brett stands by while his teammates pull a humiliating prank on Preston, Brett questions his life’s direction. With the state championship approaching and a UCLA scout coming to town, Brett quits the team, making enemies of his coach, teammates, and hard-drinking father. Meanwhile Preston, whose father was killed during a mugging, has taken to donning a superhero costume at night and recklessly attempting to fight crime on the streets of Spokane. It takes time for Brett and Preston to see eye to eye, but they build
a friendship based on loyalty and brutal honesty, encouraging each other to turn their lives around on their own terms. While Brett narrates, Harmon’s well-crafted dialogue makes both boys’ pain and turmoil deeply felt. Preston’s caustic and often insightful voice (“You never do anything dangerous, do you?” he asks Brett) is especially resonant. Ages 14–up.

May 15, 2015
In this new football novel, a nerdy superhero and a clueless sports star demonstrate that all the play-by-play that really matters is mostly off the field. The actual game of football almost disappears in this look at the good vs. evil among sports coaches, parents, teammates, and so on. Under his father's tutelage, Brett, better known as Stick, has been dedicated to football since he was very young, mostly loving the game and energized by his skill, but the thrill may be fading. In part due to the unending pressure and in part due to the bullying his teammates inflict on Preston, a nonathletic, comic-book-loving classmate, Stick begins to see his father, coach, and teammates in a new light. Stick decides to quit the team just as a UCLA scholarship is in the offing. He's also failing at math, which drives Stick to seek out Preston for tutoring, a relationship that gives him a greater understanding of Preston's quiet strengths. A superhero element gradually emerges, and with Preston's guidance, Stick begins to parse the difference between motivations and results-maybe he can find a way to play football without violating his moral code. Readers may find some supporting characters' development and growth difficult to believe, but they will nevertheless respond to Stick's awakening to the wider world and the complexity of navigating it. Engaging and uplifting. (Fiction. 12-16)

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July 1, 2015

Gr 10 Up-Brett "Stick" Patterson has a love/hate relationship with football. He loves the game itself but hates the win-at-all-costs attitude that prevails on his high school team. He hates even more the way others-especially his power-mad coach and abusive, alcoholic father-exploit his talent. Nerdy Preston Underwood comes to Brett's attention as the boy is being pelted by eggs thrown by Brett's bullying teammates. Brett fails to intervene but is intrigued by Preston's serene attitude in the face of such abuse. The two form a relationship as Preston tutors Brett in math and also pushes him to confront the issues in his life that he has been avoiding. Preston has issues of his own: his father was murdered before his eyes during a robbery. Brett quits the football team and with the help of a sympathetic guidance counselor, transfers to another school where he is able to join a team coached by a fair-minded man. Meanwhile, Preston takes to the streets at night dressed in a superhero costume trying to thwart crime (to atone for his inaction in his father's death). Brett's former teammates attack both of them in their rage at his defection. There is way too much going on in this novel for any of the important issues raised to be treated with any depth or complexity, and the scatological language would limit the potential audience to older teen readers, even as the vocabulary, sentence structure, and general level of sophistication suggest a lower reading level. VERDICT An additional purchase only.-Richard Luzer, Fair Haven Union High School, VT

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2015
Grades 7-10 Oddball, opposites-attract friendships are a staple of YA literature, and Harmon's protagonists are no exception: Stick is a football hero who seems destined for greatness; Preston is the proverbial loser. Something about the nerd's ability to be totally unfazed by bullying strikes a chord with Stick. When Preston starts tutoring the athlete in math, a little snooping reveals some of his secretsPreston cultivates his fearlessness by dressing as a superhero and patrolling city streets at night to combat crime. Inspired, Stick confronts the things bothering him about his own life: his drunk father, who lives for his son's sport victories; his thug teammates; and his unsportsmanlike coach. Should he quit doing what he loves, or find a better way to pursue his dreams? While the plot resolves a little too nicely, it will have real appeal for readers looking for a different kind of uplift in their sports fiction. Harmon scores with these heroes, who show that winning can come in many different forms.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)