December 1, 2004
Gr 4-8-When Matt Harper's mother accepts a mysterious government job overseas, the boy must leave his home in Chicago to live with his Uncle Clay for a year in Dragon Valley. He is not happy but decides that he'll be fine as long as he can hit the slopes and snowboard. Then he runs into Riley, the best snowboarder and most popular boy in the eighth grade, and soon rumors are being spread about his past-that he was in a gang, did drugs, and that his mother is in prison. Matt must find a way to prove his innocence before Riley's campaign ruins him. The story is formulaic and laden with clich d language but it might appeal to sports-minded reluctant readers.-Kristina Aaronson, Henniker Community School, NH
Copyright 2004 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
January 1, 2005
In "Champ", Matt, who is living temporarily with his uncle, practices his snowboard technique and contends with a local bully. In "Home", Joey must adjust to his family's Nicaraguan foreign-exchange student, whose baseball skills surpass his own. Both books contain formulaic plots, weak prose, and, in the case of "Home", excessive sentimentality, but there's enough athletic action to please sports fans.
(Copyright 2005 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)