Home-Field Advantage

Tuck, an NFL football star and literacy advocate, makes his children's book debut with an upbeat autobiographical tale. "When people ask me how I got to be so tough, I say, You'd be tough too, if you grew up with... my five sisters!' " he writes. In brassy, caricatured watercolors, Mad magazine cartoonist Rodriguez depicts the siblings as feisty and bright-eyed, especially twins Christale and Tiffany, first seen smirking and holding a hose that they turn on Justin. Noting that the twins "especially helped me to be extra tough," the author recalls the day they dragged him outdoors to cut his hair. Rodriguez keeps readers in suspense for a bit, before revealing the boy's disastrous reverse Mohawk. Although it's a pretty thin anecdote on which to build a book, the story radiates familial warmth and cohesiveness, well before the author spells it out explicitly: "Even when they did things like this, I knew they loved me and I loved them." New York Giants fans in particular ought to get a kick out of this slice-of-life offering. Ages 48. (Aug.)

Copyright 2011 Publishers Weekly Used with permission.

PreS-Gr 2—In a conversational style, the New York Giants' defensive end tells the story of when his twin sisters, Christale and Tiffany, decide to give him a haircut. The results are eye-popping. Justin sees his mangled hair in a mirror and holes up in his room. He remains in bed until his parents return home and bawls when they pull off his blanket. The sisters admit that maybe they did go a bit too far, apologize, and assure him that they love him. He acknowledges that he knows he is loved, but also notes that over time he became less of a pushover. The plot is realistic and believable. Rodriguez's comical watercolor illustrations match well with the text. The children's exaggerated expressions capture Justin and his sisters' changing emotions. A good choice for storytimes or independent reading.—Lynn Vanca, Freelance Librarian, Akron, OH