Tag: football

REVIEW: Quadzilla Finds His Footing by AJ Dillon

REVIEW: Quadzilla Finds His Footing by AJ Dillon

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Quadzilla likes hanging out with his monster friends. They are all good at something they play, but Quadzilla hasn’t found his “thing,” yet.

Review

The Green Bay Packers posted a video this summer where they asked various players what they did during the off season. Running Back AJ Dillon said he wrote a children’s book. Of course, I had to check it out.

This is a cute story with a nice message about trying again and perseverance. Quadzilla eventually finds his place/activity in football, of course. But he also keeps trying the things his friends like, too.

The message makes this a fun read, and I think kids will get a kick out of the monster characters.

Rating: ♥♥♥*

♥♥♥ = Good/Solid/Fine

REVIEW: Fake It Till You Bake It by Jamie Wesley

REVIEW: Fake It Till You Bake It by Jamie Wesley

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and St. Martin’s Griffin in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Donovan Dell – pro football player, baker, and part owner of Sugar Blitz, a San Diego cupcake store. The store is Donovan’s dream – and his back up plan for life after football. But sagging sales are putting his dream in jeopardy. So he lets the sassy customer get to him as he tries to defend his store.

Jada Townsend-Matthews – reality TV star, and target of vicious hate after turning down a marriage proposal on the show My One and Only. Jada only goes into Sugar Blitz because her best friend loves their cupcakes. She doesn’t intend to get into a verbal battle with the sexy staff member. Her day only goes downhill from there, ending with a summons to her grandmother’s office to talk about her “future” and lack of direction in life.

In order for Jada to access her trust fund when she turns 26, her grandmother is requiring her to work a consistent job – and she’s convinced one of her football players to hire Jada. Now Donovan and Jada are thrown together again. But when a reporter shows up at Sugar Blitz and pressures Jada on why she turned down the marriage proposal on TV, Jada panics and says it’s because she is in love with Donovan. And the kiss she springs on him goes viral.

Review

This was excellent! If I wasn’t laughing at something out loud, I had a big grin on my face. This was delightful! Fake dating is one of my favorite tropes, so I was already sold with that part of the story. But the slowly thawing animosity between the main characters was perfectly paced and so satisfying. The dual perspective storytelling gives the reader all the insights about the characters’ thoughts and feelings while still letting the action unfold over time. The chemistry between the two main characters was fantastic, too.

I also loved the dynamic with Donovan and his business partners. I had my fingers crossed all the way through that this would turn out to be just the first book in a series focused on those three men. Judging by the end of this, my wish is coming true. Don’t miss this fun, steamy romance! (Language, sex)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥♥½ = I loved it! Would re-read.

REVIEW: I Survived the Attacks of September 11, 2001 (Graphic Novel) by Lauren Tarshis

REVIEW: I Survived the Attacks of September 11, 2001 (Graphic Novel) by Lauren Tarshis

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Edelweiss and Scholastic Graphix in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Lucas is a football player. But after a significant concussion – his third in 2 years – his parents decide he shouldn’t  play any more for his own safety. But Lucas decides to appeal to his “Uncle” Benny. Benny is Lucas’s dad’s best friend at the firehouse. Benny stepped up and helped Lucas’s family when his dad was hurt in a fire. He got Lucas into football in the first place. So Lucas cuts school on the morning of September 11, 2001 to talk to Benny.

While Lucas and Benny are near the firehouse, talking, the first plane hits the World Trade Center. As the firefighters head to the site and Lucas watches the news at the firehouse, the second plane hits. Lucas is alone at the station. He can’t get a call out to either of his parents. What should Lucas do next?

Review

This is excellent! The story is full, giving context to Lucas being in the city on a school day as well as giving football book-ends to the more serious pieces of the story. The basics of 9/11 are covered honestly, straightforwardly, with details that are appropriate for young readers.

The author includes her 9/11 story, told in comic panels at the end of the book. Other information about 9/11 and the aftermath is included in the backmatter. The artwork is stellar! Easy to follow, conveying the details of the scenes well.

September 11th, 2001, changed everything. And kids today were born into that changed world. They have questions about what happened that day. With the 20th anniversary coming up, this will be a great resource to answer some of their questions. I highly recommend this one for graphic novel fans, fans of the I Survived series, and kids curious to know more about this significant historical event.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥♥ = Outstanding!

BONUS REVIEW: Snapped by Alexa Martin

BONUS REVIEW: Snapped by Alexa Martin

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Berkley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Elliot “Elle” Reed is living her dream. She is the strategic communications manager for the Denver Mustangs. And she could only have been happier if her father had lived to see it. She loves football, and loves the Mustangs. And she’s thrilled to be part of the PR staff, helping the team and players with messaging and image.

Quinton Howard Jr is the Mustang’s star quarterback. The Denver team put him on their roster after he led another team to the championship  in his first year off the bench. And Quinton has decided to use his notoriety and his platform to speak up for issues in the league and in the world. So he takes a knee during the National Anthem. And Elliot is sent to manage the story – and Quinton.

After a few rocky conversations, Elle and Quinton eventually find a tenuous working relationship. But he’s brittle and abrasive. And she’s still trying to hold back her personal grief. Yet when a drunken kiss upends the fragile peace between them, it also just might be what they need to get them to open up to one another. But forces are at work that want to silence Quinton and put Elle in her place. Will they stand together or be torn apart?

Review

This is book four in the Playbook series after Intercepted (♥♥♥♥), Fumbled, and Blitzed. While I haven’t yet read book 3, right now this is my favorite book in the series.

The “Lady Mustangs” and Elle’s friends shine in this book. I adored the community Elle builds with her school friends and her new Mustangs-adjacent friends. They made for almost all of my favorite moments in the book. (Donny was in several of the others. What a hoot!) As always, the writing here is sharp and smart, and I loved it. Sections begged to be read aloud, and I laughed often in the first two-thirds of the book before things got more serious.

The piece that set this story apart for me was the focus on race, racial identity for Ella as a bi-racial woman, and racism both in some of the characters and also in the football league as an institution. The book raises excellent questions. And the author takes readers along as voices are raised and issues are spelled out. No miracle solutions are offered, but readers will enjoy excellent storytelling with a realistic bite. I loved the author’s note up front about the impetus for this story.

Series fans should not miss this one! And I think newcomers will be able to start here without any issues. This is a fantastic story that will stand on its own. The football pieces to this are not heavy handed, so if you aren’t a fan or don’t understand the game, it won’t be an issue. But once you meet the Lady Mustangs, you are going to want to pick up the rest of the series! (Language, sex)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥♥½= Loved it! Would re-read.

REVIEW: Sidelined by Suzanne Baltsar

REVIEW: Sidelined by Suzanne Baltsar

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Gallery Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Charlie Gibb has been working in recruitment at Georgia Tech for five years. But no matter what she does – playing professional women’s football, assistant coaching special teams, or recruitment – she knows this is the best she will get at Georgia Tech. Too many people think she only has the job she does because her dad is the football coach. So she goes looking for another job. And she ends up head coach at Douglass High School in Minneapolis.

Connor McGuire has been with the Douglass team for eight years. When the coach retired, everyone assumed Connor, the offensive coordinator, would get the job. But Charlie got it instead. Connor knows the players and the parents. He’s put in the time. Who is this woman they chose over him?!

There’s a lot of push and pull between Connor and Charlie as Charlie develops her team and Connor discovers she might actually know what she’s talking about. Charlie’s own past causes her to keep impossibly high standards for herself both professionally and personally, making it hard to feel like she has found a home in Minneapolis.  Add to that the forces at work that want to push her off the team. When push comes to shove, will Connor stand with her or against her?

Review

This was great! I loved the football pieces and the character development in this. The feminist story line had some familiar themes, but they felt fresh in the context of this football story. It was great.

I liked Charlie and Connor as a couple, although it was often more antagonistic than warm between them. The larger circle of their friends, and Connor’s family, had a fun dynamic, too. I haven’t read the first book, Trouble Brewing, which includes some of these same characters, but that didn’t impact my enjoyment of this story on its own.

I enjoyed the wrap up of the conflicts central to the story. I especially enjoyed some encouragement Charlie gets in one part of the book to keep a bigger/wider perspective on her skills and experience. I thought it was a good reminder for anyone in a tough work situation.

Fans of The Playbook series or romance stories in general (and the enemies to lovers trope in specific) should check this one out! (Language, sex)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Fumbled by Alexa Martin

REVIEW: Fumbled by Alexa Martin

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Berkley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

When Poppy was a teenager, she got pregnant. When she told her boyfriend TK, his mom gave her money and told her to end the pregnancy. Keeping the baby cost her everything – TK, her parents, her home, and her life in DC.

Thankfully, Aunt Maya welcomed her into her home in Denver. Now it’s just Poppy and her son, Ace, but they are living a contented life together. He has always been the light of her life. They don’t have much money, but they get by. Sure, she has a crappy job as a waitress at the Emerald Cabaret. She has to wear a corset and ridiculously high heels every day. And occasionally she has to deal with sleazy customers who think they can touch as well as look. But Ace is worth any amount of hassle.

Poppy has always felt pretty lucky that the club doesn’t cater to a professional football clientele. Because TK is on the Denver Mustangs football team these days. And she does NOT need him stumbling back into her life. He has no idea Ace even exists. And Poppy is happy to keep it that way.

And then one night, the Mustangs show up at the Emerald Cabaret.

Review

This was so fun! I loved the first book in this series, Interception. The intersection of real life, romance and football is a great fit for me as a reader. In the first book, the main character needed to find her voice and her agency  over her own life (a theme I love in books). In this one, Poppy already knows who she is and what’s most important to her. The story in this one focuses on Poppy figuring out if TK belongs in her life at all.

This story is terrific! Poppy finds a fantastic circle in this book – football wives and other friends who care about her and about Ace first – before the Mustangs or TK or anything else. I also was thrilled at the honesty of the story – no secrets (other than Ace early on), no lies. Poppy speaks her mind and holds firm to her boundaries as a mom. She tells herself she can walk away from TK if he is not on board with what she has to say. The story also deals with contemporary issues in football, including concussion protocols and CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy).

This is a must-read series for me – I love the sass and strength of the female characters and the happy endings in this series so far. I can’t wait to see what happens in book 3, Blitzed, due out before the end of the year! (Language, sex)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Friday Night Stage Lights by Rachele Alpine

REVIEW: Friday Night Stage Lights by Rachele Alpine

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Brooklyn had a life she loved in Oregon with her mom. They had their surprise pancake breakfasts and their two-person routines. And Brooklyn had her dance studio and her friends.

But when her mom married Stephen, they had to move to Texas because Stephen’s son, Tanner, was a high school football star. And in Texas, football is everything.

Brooklyn is getting sick of the all-football-all-the-time life in Texas. She hates the games. She hates that she’s lost a lot of her special connection with her mom because her mom has thrown herself into football-mom mode for Tanner. And now, her one sanctuary, her new dance studio, has been invaded – by football players.

The middle school team is doing conditioning at her studio, and Brooklyn has to help them as part of her application to the Texas School of the Arts. But the boys always goof around, and they are infuriating. But when Brooklyn’s dance partner for her TSOTA audition breaks his leg, one of those football players may be her only chance to salvage her audition.

Review

This was so fun! I’m not sure I’ve ever read an Aladdin MIX book that I haven’t enjoyed. When I see the multicolored strip at the edge of the book, I know I’m going to enjoy it. And this is a great example of the fun stories in the line.

Brooklyn is relate-able from the start – her frustration with her family and the football players who mock her passion for dance, her hurt feelings when everyone seems to put Tanner and football first, her connections with Tanner and Logan. I loved all of it. She also has some real dance issues to sort out – getting past a bad performance where she was injured, figuring out who she is dancing for, and deciding if TSOTA is really what she wants for her future.

As a football fan, I loved watching her soften towards the players and the game as she learned more about it. It’s a great reminder to try to understand new things before deciding they are awful just because they are unfamiliar.

I can’t wait to pass this one on to some students I know. I think they will enjoy Brooklyn, Logan and the rest of the folks in this story as much as I did. Highly recommend!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½

SATURDAY SMORGASBORD: Fun Sports Books for Kids

Posted on by Jaymie

 

You can’t go wrong with books for kids that focus on the sports they love – or even sports in general. Here are some of my favorite sports books to share with kids.

innings-and-outs-of-baseballThe Innings and Outs of Baseball (Science of Fun Stuff) – I love this early reader series – Science of Fun Stuff and History of Fun Stuff. This particular book focuses on the history of baseball. After the epic World Series victory by the Chicago Cubs this year, baseball is as popular as ever.

 

 

babymouse-goes-for-the-gold

Babymouse 20: Babymouse Goes for the Gold – If you haven’t read a Babymouse graphic novel before, you’re missing out. They are FUN, with great pop culture references throughout each story. This particular one focuses on the Olympics.

 

 

jump-shot

Jump Shot (Barber Game Time Books) – I have enjoyed this series about twin brothers, based on the real-life athletes, Tiki and Ronde Barber. They have books about baseball, football and basketball, but this one is my favorite.

 

 

fantasy-league left-out

Two of the most prolific writers of sports books for kids are Mike Lupica and Tim Green.  Fantasy League – Our family has played fantasy football for years. That made this book extra fun to read. Even though it is written for kids, my husband and I both enjoyed it. It’s about a kid who is amazing at fantasy football. Then he gets to try his skills with an actual football team. Left Out – I haven’t read this one yet, but I have it on my TBR pile. It focuses on a deaf kid who wants to play football and the challenges he faces. I’m really looking forward to reading this one.

athlete-vs-mathlete double-dribble time-out

This series is my favorite of all the sports books! This series is about a set of fraternal twins. One is a basketball star and the other is a star student. When the “smart one” gets recruited for the basketball team in book one, Athlete vs. Mathlete, it starts a series of identity struggles for the boys. “Who am I if I’m not the ‘athletic one’ any more?” In book two, Athlete vs. Mathlete: Double Dribble, the question becomes, “Who are we if we aren’t the best twins in basketball?” And book three, Athlete vs. Mathlete: Time-Out, puts the focus back on the original twins as they try to find their place at a competitive summer sports camp. These would be great for a classroom read aloud where students could talk about the identity struggles of the boys.

what-is-the-world-series what-is-the-super-bowl what-are-the-summer-olympics

Finally, there’s the Who Was series of books. The original series focused on biographies, but they have expanded into Where Is, which looks at amazing places around the world, and What Is which looks at different periods in history and other things. The What Is series includes these sports titles: What Is the World Series? (What Was…?),What Is the Super Bowl? (What Was…?), What Are the Summer Olympics? (What Was…?).

 

Do you have any sports lovers in your life?