Benchwarmers

July 15, 2019
An all-boys soccer team is put to the test when a talented girl wants to join their ranks. Jeff Michaels is excited to learn that his middle school will now be offering sports teams for sixth graders in the fall: field hockey for girls and soccer for boys. When his female classmate Andrea "Andi" Carillo shows up for soccer tryouts, he's impressed by her skill on the field. Others, however, are upset and even angry that she's attempting to join the team. When Andi is unjustly excluded by a disgruntled coach, Jeff and Andi reach out to the media to pressure him into letting her on the team. Andi grapples for playing time and soon proves her strength on and off the field, but the team is still fractured by huge disagreements over Andi and even bigger egos. The team will have to learn to work together to reach their goal of winning the conference title. Feinstein includes detailed play-by-play of the middle school soccer matches that will be thrilling for soccer buffs but less exciting for the casual reader. Andi's grit and refusal to back down in the face of sexism are inspirational and reflect the real challenges facing student athletes today. It is mentioned briefly that one soccer teammate is Jewish and two are black; other characters are assumed white. Soccer fans will get a kick out of the game-day action in this straightforward series opener. (Fiction. 8-14)

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August 16, 2019

Gr 4-&6-A soccer story that shoots toward female empowerment but misses the goal. Jeff knows that Andi Carillo, the only girl trying out for Merion's 6th-grade soccer team, is one of the best players he's ever seen. So, when the list goes up and Andi is cut, Jeff brings in his TV sports reporter Dad to cover the story. All the attention gets Andi on the team, but their coach's resentment puts both of them on the bench. The question is how to get off of it. Jeff and Andi are poorly developed characters who only show growth on the field. Although writing about strong female soccer players is important, Andi shows no depth beyond her ability to make great passes and score goals. The story is rooted in the male gaze; no one would know of her greatness if not for the help and acceptance of her male counterparts and coaches. VERDICT A mediocre sports book for avid soccer fans. Not recommended.-Rebecca Fitzgerald, Harrison Public Library, NY

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2019
Grades 4-7 Jeff and Andi are super excited their sixth-grade classes now get a chance to play sports at their school. Unfortunately, Andi wants to play soccer, and there is no girls' team. The coach reluctantly allows her to try out, and despite her being one of the best players, he refuses to give her a spot on the team. Jeff finds this unfair?they could stand a chance at making it to the championships with Andi on their team?so he asks his sports-reporter father to feature her story. Viral backlash causes Coach Johnston to give Andi a spot; however, she faces discrimination from the coach, some fellow teammates, and other soccer teams, which means her victory is far from over. Feinstein's series opener doesn't offer any new ground to the "girl fights to be on boys' sports team" story, but he writes engaging characters and offers readers in-depth play-by-play sports action that results in a fun, fast-paced story that will appeal to readers who can't get enough sports fiction.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)