Gym Candy

I'm not a huge sports fan but that didn't stop me from enjoying this teen football novel about the dangers of doping and steroids. Mick Johnson has spent his whole life in his father's impressive football shadow and he's determined to prove to him and to himself that he can be the best running back in town. Determined to bulk up fast and become a starter on the varsity team he starts taking steroids on the side because his trainer convinces him it's safe and it will help him unleash his inner beast. Soon all Mick is doing is working out and trying to outplay his teammates. He pushes his friends away in his quest for greatness and becomes very focused on achieving the only thing he thinks he cares with him. Obviously this comes with a show more huge price and everything could fall apart in an instant if someone discovered the truth. A quick easy read that is realistic and helps people understand how athletes and body builders fall into the doping trap. A great read for teenage boys, especially jocks. show less

This is an accurate portrayal of a high school sophomore and his quest to be the best player on his football team. He wants this for himself and for his father, a former pro football player. Mick Johnson begins using legal substances to bulk up and become bigger, stronger, faster. Before long, a trainer has given him steroids. The expected results happen; Mick gets somewhat better but has some problems with the side effects. The situation comes to a head when his friend finds out about the steroid use. I thought the ending was going to be a little too pat and cliche, but it redeemed itself and was realistic.

This is NOT A GIRLY BOOK. Just wanted to put that out there because the title can sound misleading to others. I mean Gym Candy? Very misleading...

Mick Johnson was made for football. His father was once a football star even going all the way to the NFL but he didn't last... His father even set him back a grade so he would be a year older than everyone else. He has an advantage with his age and his who his father is because since he was small he was taught the game and he never gave him an inch. His mother doesn't really understand how much football means to him but that's alright. As long as he has football he'll be okay. And then he's starting as a freshman Running Back with his friend Drew by his side as Quarterback. They've known each show more other for a long time and their friendship will be rocked by how Mick starts to act. Standoffish, too busy, and unnecessarily angry. The problem is that Mick isn't good enough. If he was only stronger he could have won a game. And then later on he is threatened by another Running Back. He goes to steroids and from then on out we will discover how strong he really is.

Ah-Mah-Zing! There aren't that many YA Sport books out there so this one was a treat and then it was about steroids so it made it even more fascinating. I felt for Mick but I couldn't see why he was doing it only at the end. I guess since his father never went to his games unless he was starting... there was pressure from him. And with the new guy coming in but I really didn't see so much pressure in the beginning. One little mishap and then you go for steroids and then the side effects? Ew. Nevertheless this book was crazy good. I loved every minute of it. I think it was so close to being a 5 star book but then the pressure thing I didn't get. I didn't see it there.

Nice twist Deuker. You had me thrown off there for a second. It made you wonder at the end which I love when author's do that. I was even more impressed with this book because I read Runner by the same author and I didn't like it that much so when I read this one I was happy and relieved. Deuker redeemed himself in my eyes. So check it out if you like Sports books.

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Reviewed by Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com

Mick Johnson has big football shoes to fill. His dad was a high school star who went on to be a college standout and then a third round draft pick in the NFL. There are two empty walls in the family den just waiting for all the honors and awards Mick is expected to earn.

Things seem to be headed in the right direction. Mick is an accomplished eighth-grade running back. He and his friend are stoked to learn they have been invited to join the high school team for their spring workouts. By the end of the summer, they both actually make it onto the varsity team as mere freshmen. But just making the team is not enough for competitive Mick. He doesn't just want to be there; he show more wants to play there, too.

Personal goals as well as parental pressure drive Mick to seek ways to speed things up. He knows he needs to be bigger and stronger, but natural growth is way too slow. Pills and protein powder from the health supplement store seem like a possible answer. He even gets his dad to agree and pay for the expense. Maybe he's on his way to playing bigger, faster, and stronger.

When Mick starts increasing his weight training time, his dad has another answer. The radio station where he works is the new owner of the local fitness center -- and free memberships for employees come with the deal. Mick starts working out with his own personal trainer. Peter, the trainer, has other ideas of how to help develop power. Mick's competitive drive pushes him toward steroid use, with all its positive results and negative side effects. His game and his body do get stronger, but at what cost? Friends, health, and personal pride suffer as Mick becomes more and more involved with the performance-enhancing drugs.

Carl Deuker, author of RUNNER and NIGHT HOOPS, focuses on football in this new book. His use of non-stop, play-by-play action, realistic teen frustrations, and personal demons make this a book even reluctant readers will be reluctant to put down. show less

Mick Johnson has been raised to be a football star. His dad, a player who washed out once he was drafted into the NFL, has been teaching Mick about the game since he could walk. As Mick enters high school, he works to make the varsity team. When his efforts to try to win a big game come up just a yard short and his is told he just needs more strength, he starts to explore ways beyond just working out to get him bigger, stronger, and faster. Soon he is experimenting with steriods, excelling on the field, and dealing with roid rage and depression.
It was hard for me to keep reading a couple times because I knew the choices Mick was making were going to take him to a bad place. It was an interesting look at the pressures on some athletes.

This is a very stark, and probably, realistic portrayal of the steroid abuse of a talented high-school football player that has a startling, disturbing and open-ended conclusion. The book takes us quickly through the childhood and middle school years of Mick Johnson as his ex-football star father turns Mick into a football obsessed, varsity team freshman. The author includes lots of football practice and game details and carefully develops the drive, desire and pressure Mick feels in his quest to be, not just good, but the best player ever. He wants to see his name in headlines alongside his father’s but, like his dad, he also strays from the acceptable path to success. The ending (SPOILER!) when Mick is confronted by his concerned show more best friend and turns a gun on himself is quite upsetting. The short epilogue that lets us know he lives through his suicide attempt and enters therapy still leaves open the possibility that Mick might have a hard time resisting “the quick fix” in the future. show less

You know if a book can get me interested (and even EXCITED) about football, it must be really well-written. This book made me lose myself inside the competitive world of high school football. It was exciting, compelling, and interesting to read.

I didn't like the fact that the main character seemed to be the only boy to take vitamins and supplements and then was the only one to get messed up in steroids--I don't want it to come off as protein supplements are a gateway drug of sorts. Other than that, the book was great, although the suicide attempt at the end seemed a little sudden and out of left field. Good read though.