Author(s): David Klass

Children Fiction

In a small working class town near New York, life for self-confessed "mediocre student and OK-athlete" Joe is very much a matter of survival for a future which holds little hope. Lacking ambition, keeping house for his unlikable father, and at a school where violence simmers below the surface, the only thing he sees he is reasonably good at is soccer. But when the "Phenom", Brazilian-born Antonio arrives and takes his place as team star, and also his girlfriend-to-be, Joe is forced to take a close, hard look at what matters most to him and, in the process, makes some important self-discoveries. A gritty, but inspiring, book for boys over 15 seeking stories with themes relevant to their own lives.