Close Call

Rating:
Summary: Leave US alone
Review: A group of kids play baseball after school. Then Jenny starts having problems,starting fights and lying to stay on the base and everything like that. Then, Jennys older step-brother is in a gang and the throw rocks and the kids while they are playing. So now they haven't played a full game in a while. What will happen? Will jenny's step-brother ever stop throwing rocks and will jenny's problems go away? Read the book and see! this was a really good book. I couldn't put it down and read it in one night!

Rating:
Summary: It's All About Friendship!
Review: As a 4th/5th grade teacher, I read children's literature for enjoyment and with one question in mind: How can I use this book in my classroom? Since I use literature sets for reading instruction, I am always looking for new titles to add to my list of book choices. Close Call may not be my favorite book of all-time, but would be good to open a discussion about friendship and our responsibilities to each other as friends. It gives the opportunity for readers to realize that everyone experiences problems and that it is always easier to to cope when friends support one another.

Rating:
Summary: It's All About Friendship!
Review: As a 4th/5th grade teacher, I read children's literature for enjoyment and with one question in mind: How can I use this book in my classroom? Since I use literature sets for reading instruction, I am always looking for new titles to add to my list of book choices. Close Call may not be my favorite book of all-time, but would be good to open a discussion about friendship and our responsibilities to each other as friends. It gives the opportunity for readers to realize that everyone experiences problems and that it is always easier to to cope when friends support one another.

Rating:
Summary: A sports book for kids of both sexes
Review: Something seems to be bothering Jenny. Baseball has always been an escape for her and her eleven-year-old friends. All of a sudden, Jenny begins acting strangely, picking fights and arguing over close calls. Then there was the problem with the big kids, led by Jenny's stepbrother Billy, who chased them off the ball field by throwing rocks at them.

Jenny's friends are determined to find out what is wrong so they can keep their after school games going. It just so happens that they learn about compassion and prejudice at the same time.

Close Call is a sports book for kids of both sexes. The teams are pretty evenly co-ed and there is a balanced mixture of baseball action and interpersonal relationships.

Much of the exposition unfolds in dialog and some of the chapters seem a bit too short and break off in the middle of a scene. It's a little choppy, but this might work to the advantage of reluctant readers who need to take a break.