Heat

By Mike Lupica
Sport: Baseball
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Noelle

Michael "Miguel" Arroyo is a 12 year old who emigrated from Cuba with his father and brother and lives in the Bronx in New York City. His passion in life is baseball, be it listening to the Yankees game (especially when his Cuban hero, El Grande, is pitching) or pitching for his Little League team, the Clippers. Michael is good at pitching. In fact, he is too good. With his team hot in the running to go to the Little League Championship in Pennsylvania, some other jealous coaches issue a challenge to Michael. Produce your birth certificate or you can't play. Suddenly Michael is in real trouble because if people start looking too closely into his life, they might find out his secret--that his father has been dead since May, and he and his brother Carlos have been covering it up so the state won't split them up. With officials sniffing around his family, the Clippers trying to win games without their star pitcher, a beautiful baseball-savvy girl named Ellie hanging around, and his birth certificate missing in action, Michael has all he can handle. Will his secret come out? Will the Clippers make it through the playoffs without him? Will his birth certificate turn up? Will Michael ever get to pitch again? This engaging sports story will have readers cheering Michael on until the very end. Fans of this story might also be interested in Mike Lupica's basketball story, Travel Team (see review) .

Last Shot

By John Feinstein
Sport: Basketball
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Noelle

Steven and Susan Carol have both won a sports writing contest that has enabled them to go to the Final Four of the NCAA Basketball Tournament and write about it like real reporters. But as they poke around the Superdome, they end up overhearing someone telling the star point guard from MSU that he better lose the final game...or else. Steven and Susan Carol have just 48 hours to find out who is blackmailing Chip Graber and why. But as one bit of information leads to another, they get deeper and deeper into a real mess. And these people aren't fooling around. Filled with exciting basketball action and a supsense-filled mystery, it is hard to put this book down! Sports fans and suspense fans alike will enjoy this story of March Madness and mystery.

Travel Team

By Mike Lupica
Sport: Basketball
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Noelle

Twelve year old Danny may be short, but he's the one of the best basketball players in town. But this year, he gets cut from the town's Travel Team by the new coach who wants to build a "bigger" team. Danny's absentee father was famous for being the star on the national championship travel team from his day, and when he comes back to town and sees Danny's disappointment, he decides to coach the team of cast off kids that Danny gathers together. Will the team of misfits make good? There is a lot of exciting basketball action which will keep sports fans interested, as well as a lot of focus on the developing relationship between Danny and his father. If you like basketball or sports stories, this one is good!