Pop
Grade 7–10—New to town, Marcus spends the summer before his junior year practicing football alone at a local park hoping to meet someone from the high school team. Instead, he meets an eccentric middle-aged man named Charlie who teaches Marcus more about football, tackling, and the art of the "pop" than he could have imagined, and the two strike up an unusual friendship. Charlie lives by no set schedule and can't seem to remember that Marcus's name is not Mac. Marcus tries out and makes the team, but learns that they are not a welcoming group, fearful that the newcomer will upset their perfect record. To make matters worse, the star quarterback, Troy, is Charlie's son, and his ex-girlfriend, Alyssa, has the hots for Marcus. Gradually, Marcus figures out that Charlie is an ex-NFL star who is suffering from early on-set Alzheimer's, a secret his family tries to keep well hidden. Despite these obstacles on and off the field, Marcus is determined to help his friend. Nick Podehl's skillful narration of his novel (HarperTeen, 2009) seamlessly flows between Marcus's teenage obliviousness and Charlie's middle-aged gruffness, adding another affective level to this heartbreaking story. Yet with plenty of football action, this atypical sports story will hook even the most reluctant readers/listeners.—Karen T. Bilton, Mary Jacobs Library, Rocky Hill, NJCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.