heat

Heat, by Mike Lupica ISBN: 0-399-24301-1 c2006 220 pages

Good sections to read aloud: pp. 1-2, then skip to pp. 4-5 where the baseball hits his head

Summary: Michael Arroyo is an awesome pitcher for his Little League team, and he is only 12 years old! He has a major secret though that he can’t let anyone find out about...his father passed away in May, and now he and his older brother are living alone. They are trying to just hang on until Carlos turns 18 before letting anyone know. If someone would happen to find out, they would become wards of the state and possibly be split up. But, when one team questions his age, the lies start to get more and more difficult to make up, especially since he needs help locating his birth certificate in Cuba. His one dream is to make it to the big leagues not only for himself, but in honor of his father. How can he and Carlos escape without anyone knowing the real truth? A great sports story with courage woven into it!

YA sports fiction: baseball; fathers; family problems; best friends; birth certificates; Cuba

©Lang-WDMS - 2006