The Turnover
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- $16.99
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- $16.99
Publisher Description
From New York Times bestselling author Mike Lupica comes a story about a young basketball player confronting the truth about his hero and grappling with right and wrong on and off the court.
Gramps is Lucas’s hero, which is second only to the fact that he is also Lucas’s basketball coach. Gramps coached the team to victory in the championships last year, and when he decides to come out of retirement to coach another season, Lucas is thrilled. This season will absolutely be the greatest yet.
So when his English teacher challenges the class to write a biography of the person they most admire, Lucas can’t think of anyone he’d rather write about.
Except...Gramps is being cagey. He avoids every question Lucas asks, and gets angry every time Lucas brings up his past as a hotshot basketball player. Lucas can’t help but wonder—is there something Gramps is trying to hide? And if there is, will Lucas be prepared to face the truth about the man he thought he knew?
With basketball championships fast approaching, time is running out for Lucas to decide.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Lupica's newest feel-good sports story features dutiful 12-year-old Lucas Winston who, having lost his father to cancer when he was an infant, looks to his grandfather for guidance, especially when it comes to basketball. Now, with Gramps returning to coach the Claremont Wolves, Lucas is confident that their talented team will dominate the season. When Lucas is assigned a biographical essay to write, he knows immediately that he wants to write about Gramps, who turns him down, unwilling to share anything about his earlier life. As Lucas pokes around, then learns the startling truth about Gramps's college career, he questions everything he thought he knew about his beloved grandfather, including whether he's the best coach for the team. Though the story's trajectory matches Lupica's tried-and-true story arc, his familiar nuts-and-bolts writing style will appeal to even struggling readers, while play-by-play descriptions of the on-court action add excitement and tension. In true Lupica style, though, the meat of the story happens off the court, where a relatable kid faces realistic challenges that young fans will know only too well. Ages 8 12.
