Recommended Ages: Gr. 9-12

Plot Summary: Danny misses his dad who disappeared about four years ago. When Danny's mom goes to live with her new boyfriend in San Francisco, Danny goes to National City for the summer to stay with his father's family in the hopes of finding his dad. While there, he hangs out with Sofia's friends and eventually gets over Uno punching him and they become good friends, working out and throwing pitches every day. Together, they try to make money by betting others can't his one of Danny's pitches. Eventually, Danny learns that his father's temper got him in jail.

Setting: National City, CA

Characters:
Danny - summer before junior year of hs, quiet, digs nail into forearm until skin breaks
Sofia - Danny's cousin, similar age, flirts with Uno
Uno - only black in group of friends, catcher, wants to live with his dad to get away from his stepdad who verbally and occasionally physically abuses him
Chico - friends with Sofia
Raul - 17 y/o
Lolo - friends with Sofia
Manuel - Uno's 15 y/o stepbrother, mentally challenged, goes to live in group home

Recurring Themes: language, Spanish, home, friendship, family

Controversial Issues: frequent underage drinking and swears; during one party, they play truth or dare and make some people go into a dark closet, but no details are given. No sex.

Personal Thoughts: I originally purchased this book on a reccomendation for a junior high library, but I was told to read it first. I'm glad I did since there are many swears and incidences of underage drinking. Overall, I thought this book was alright. It took me a little while to get into it, and I knew right away that Danny was never going to make it to see his dad. I liked that Danny and Uno became friends but it worries me that Danny never received any help for digging into his arms. ( )

Reviewed by Mrs. Foley
Danny, who is tall and skinny but has a talent for pitching a fastball, cannot seem to fit in at school in San Diego, where his Mexican and white heritage causes people to judge him before he even speaks. - From library catalog record

This is a Gateway nominee for next year and I'm glad it made the final list. Of course, I'm a sucker for a good baseball book. But, this book has SO much more. Danny has a white mom and a Mexican dad who are divorced. He lives with his mom and attends a private school where he doesn't quite fit in because he is Mexican. For the summer he goes to visit his Mexican relatives in National City where he doesn't quite fit in because he is white. He is an incredible pitcher who can't keep control of the ball when it counts (like during baseball tryouts). He rarely talks and sometimes will dig his fingernails into his arm when he feels angry or uncomfortable. During the book, he begins to discover who he is and learns the truth about his father. Lots of interesting characters are going through similar self-discovery in the book.

Review from Horn Book:
Danny lives in two worlds but doesn't belong anywhere. The kids at his private school never let him forget that he is half Mexican. His cousins are uneasy around him because he is too white; he doesn't speak Spanish or fit into their San Diego barrio culture. The one place Danny feels accepted is on the baseball field, where his ninety-five-mile-per-hour fastball gets everyone's attention. But Danny only wants the attention of one person: his father. Danny imagines becoming a star pitcher and making his father proud enough to return from Mexico. Despite his natural talent, Danny pitches wildly every time a big-league scout is watching, until he meets Uno, a tough street thug who offers unexpected friendship and teaches him to let his talent take control and release the hurt inside. This fast-paced baseball story is unique in its gritty realism and honest portrayal of the complexities of life for inner-city teens, framed in the context of the emotional confusion of broken homes and bicultural pressures. De la Pena poignantly conveys the message that, despite obstacles, you must believe in yourself and shape your own future. ( )

If you like baseball you will like this. It also has a message on racial identity. ( )

Half a baseball story, half a story about sons looking for their fathers, this was a satisfying read. The main characters came alive (though there were too many minor characters to keep straight). Chapters from alternating viewpoints gave the story an extra dimension. If I could change one thing about the book, I would have made D learn Spanish over the summer...I hate to see those missed educational opportunities! ;) ( )

Danny has always struggled with his identity, half-Mexican and hakf-white. When he heads to San Diego to spend the summer with his cousin, he begins to make new friends on the baseball field and eventually learns to accept himself and his family, even with their faults. ( )