Strike Zone (Heat #2)
by Mike Lupica (Author)
A timely and heartfelt follow-up to #1 New York Times bestseller Heat, about a young baseball prodigy and his immigrant family living in today's America.
Twelve-year-old star Little League pitcher Nick Garcia has a dream. Several in fact. He dreams he'll win this season's MVP and the chance to throw out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium. He dreams he'll meet his hero, Yankee's pitcher Michael Arroyo. He dreams they'll find a cure for Lupus so he sister won't have to suffer. But mostly, he dreams one day his family can stop living in fear of the government. For one kid, it's almost too much to bear. Luckily, Nick has his two best friends Ben and Diego to keep him balanced. But when Nick notices a mysterious man lurking on his street corner, he senses a threat. Suddenly, his worst fears are realized, and just when it seems there's no one they can trust, an unexpected hero emerges and changes everything.
Praise for Strike Zone *"Lupica skillfully addresses the timely and complicated topic of living as the child of undocumented immigrants and the uncertainty facing many American families....This exceptional baseball novel delivers both lively sports action and critical subject matter." --Kirkus Reviews (starred review) --"Lupica's action sequences are thrilling and fast-paced....[a] solid purchase where Mike Lupica and the Yankees are popular." --School Library Journal --"As he did in Heat, Lupica skillfully juggles the baseball drama with the larger social issues that swirl around it, vividly putting a human face on the immigration crisis." --Booklist --"Strike Zone brings the game of baseball to life, but moreover, it addresses immigration, a current issue in U.S. culture and politics. Teens will choose to read Strike Zone as a "sports book" but will root for Nick both on and off the field. The Garcia family's desire to become legal U.S. citizens is well woven into this fast-paced story." --VOYA
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School Library Journal
Gr 4-7-Nick Garcia hopes to be as good a pitcher as his idol, New York Yankees ace Michael Arroyo (whom readers may recognize from Mike Lupica's Heat), but first he has to get his team to the Dream League tournament. If they win, he gets to throw the first pitch at a Yankees game. However, Nick has much more on his mind than baseball; his sister has lupus and his family lives in constant fear of ICE discovering his parents' undocumented status. In this timely tale, Lupica has written a story that is extremely relevant to today's political climate, highlighting how immigrants feel under today's administration and the reality of ICE raids. As always, Lupica's action sequences are thrilling and fast-paced. He has gotten the voices and calls of radio announcers John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman down pat—readers will feel like they're listening to the game on their local WFAN affiliate. Short chapters encourage quick reading for reluctant readers while swiftly moving the plot along; readers will most likely realize how the baseball plot will play out, so the real anticipation comes from waiting for ICE to show up for Nick's father. When they finally do, it packs a serious emotional punch to the gut of the reader. Fair warning—Lupica takes a hard political stance against the current administration without naming names. VERDICT Baseball acts as the backdrop to tell the story of life as an immigrant in modern day America. Solid purchase where Mike Lupica and the Yankees are popular.-Kerri Williams, Sachem Public Library, Holbrook, NY
Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
