The Losers at the Center of the Galaxy

by Mary Winn Heider (Author)

The Losers at the Center of the Galaxy
Reading Level: 4th − 5th Grade
A tuba player without a tuba and his jellyfish-imitating sister cope with their father's disappearance in this hilarious and moving novel by the author of The Mortification of Fovea Munson. When Lenny Volpe, former quarterback of the worst professional football team in the nation, leaves his family and disappears, the Chicago Horribles win their first game in a long time. Fans are thrilled. The world seems to go back to normal. Except for the Volpe kids. Winston throws himself into playing the tuba, and Louise starts secret experiments to find a cure for brain injuries, and they're each fine, just fine, coping in their own way. That is, until the investigation of some eccentric teacher behavior and the discovery of a real live bear paraded as the Horribles' new mascot make it clear that things are very much Not Fine. The siblings may just need each other, after all.
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$16.99

School Library Journal

Starred Review

Gr 3-7It is well documented that repeated head trauma received in sports such as football can cause chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disorder that affects many athletes for the rest of their lives. The condition is dramatized in this touching book chronicling the upended lives of Louise and Winston Volpe. Their father, Lenny Volpe, a former quarterback for the fictional football team the Chicago Horribles, had the disease and disappeared from home one day, never to be found. The children are left to their own devices by their hardworking mother, a real estate agent, and grief over the loss of their father and husband remains unspoken among the three of them. Louise dedicates her efforts to finding a cure for CTE with her science club while simultaneously trying to save a captive bear, and Winston (along with his fellow tuba-playing friend, Frenchie) gets caught up in the mysterious behavior of their middle school teachers. The chapters alternate between Louise and Winston, creating two subplots that dovetail at the end of the book. Readers who have family members with chronic illnesses, or who have lost a parent, will relate to the story of this brother-sister duo who work through the grief in the best ways they can. VERDICT This tender, wacky, and often humorous story will be enjoyed by all middle grade readers. Librarians looking for books on unique and timely health topics in fiction should consider this title.—Anne Jung-Mathews, Plymouth State Univ., NH

Copyright 2021 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Publishers Weekly

Two years ago, Lenny Volpe disappeared. The much-hated former quarterback for the Chicago Horribles, whose repeated concussions from playing caused traumatic encephalopathy, also happens to be Winston and Louise's father. Ever since then, Winston, now an eighth grader at Subito School, has resisted "dying from loneliness" thanks to two things: his tuba, and his friend Frenchie LeGume, a fellow tuba player who has vitiligo. Suspecting that their teachers are part of a criminal ring, Frenchie has enlisted Winston to help investigate. Seventh grader Louise, meanwhile, lives for Science Club despite its annoying members; for the past two years, she has been "working on a cure for brain injuries." But Louise now has an additional mission: rescuing the newest attraction at Horribles games, a caged bear that paces on the sidelines and which reminds her of their dad's constant pacing before he left. Hurt by their father's absence as well as their mother's seeming indifference toward them, the Volpe siblings are relatable as they shut each other out; their journey toward reconnecting is well worth the ride. Heider skillfully interweaves seemingly disparate threads into this character-centered, heartfelt story, culminating in a satisfying conclusion. Ages 8-12. Agent: Tina Dubois, ICM Partners. (Mar.)

Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

"[T]he Volpe siblings are relatable as they shut each other out; their journey toward reconnecting is well worth the ride. Heider skillfully interweaves seemingly disparate threads into this character-centered, heartfelt story, culminating in a satisfying conclusion."

Publishers Weekly
Mary Winn Heider
Mary Winn Heider is the author of two middle-grade novels: The Losers at the Center of the Galaxy and The Mortification of Fovea Munson. She is currently working on a theatrical adaptation of FOVEA for The Kennedy Center with the composer Justin Huertas. Her picture book The Unicorns Who Saved Christmas, illustrated by Christian Cornia, is out now. Mary Winn has an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and she lives in Chicago, where she teaches creative writing residencies with PlayMakers Lab, performs at theaters around the city, and sometimes helps out at The Mystery League.

Chad Sell grew up in a small town in central Wisconsin. He lived in a neighborhood much like the Cardboard Kingdom, where he and his friends bounded through backyards in imaginative games and outfits. He also drew a lot and came up with all kinds of colorful characters. His favorites were often the villains, because despite being different and misunderstood, they were powerful and confident, and they got the best costumes. Chad lives in Connecticut with his husband and two cats.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780759555426
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date
March 20, 2021
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV019000 - Juvenile Fiction | Humorous Stories
JUV029000 - Juvenile Fiction | Nature & the Natural World | General
JUV013060 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Parents
JUV031040 - Juvenile Fiction | Performing Arts | Music
JUV039020 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Adolescence
JUV013070 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Siblings
JUV029010 - Juvenile Fiction | Nature & the Natural World | Environment
Library of Congress categories
Brothers and sisters
Chicago (Ill.)
Missing persons
Experiments
Middle schools
Mascots
Football teams
Ex-football players

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