September 23, 2025 by HarperCollins
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
Zeno Fyfe is heavily involved in the Junior Football League in Atlanta, and hopes to impress the high school coach, but he doesn't seem to acknowledge the incoming 7th grader's fantastic throwing skills. However, someone else does; Coach Lamb, of the International Sports Management Group sports boarding school does. Lamb is so impressed by Zeno's skills that he offers him a full tuition scholarship. This is great, since Zeno's father isn't a great businessman, and his restaurant doesn't do well enough for him to afford the $90,000 a year tuition. Lured by the idea of Zeno making bigs bucks even in college, with the Name, Image, Likeness opportunities, his father is completely on board. Before he knows it, Zeno is checking in to the school and meeting his beefy roommate, Archie Takowsky, who likes to talk about himself in the third person while letting toxic farts rip. Coach Pantz isn't thrilled with Coach Lamb, who was brought in because he knew someone on the influential board, and so is tougher on Zeno than he should be. Zeno's year starts out well; he has a crush on blonde volleyball player Rachel, impresses his advanced math teacher, and does well on the field. When a play goes wrong and he sprains his ankle, though he is worried that he won't be able to play until Coach Lamb "cures" his injury with a crystal and some "voodoo". Mentioning the miracle cure, but not calling it voodoo, during an interview causes Zeno's popularity to soar, and his father's restaurant's business to pick up. His father gets him an interview in New York City even though he doesn't get permission from the school. This causes some problems, but Zeno is more concerned with a crisis that Rachel is having. Her father is a gambler, and has recently lost so much money that it's doubtful that she can continue in the school. Her boyfriend, Tod Parrotte, an 8th grader who has been "reclassed" a couple of times (meaning that he is fifteen, but playing in a league for younger kids), claims that an ancestor of his was a pirate who had a treasure buried in the swamp near the Florida school. He's not willing to take the risk to help Rachel dig it up in the middle of the night, but a besotted Zeno IS. He and Rachel spend quite a bit of time digging, finding empty boxes and little else. These late night forays don't help Zeno's football or academic ventures at all. After finding a chest with a note from 1805 claiming the rumors of a treasure are all a joke, a long with three gold coins, Zeno tells Rachel he is done. There is a football game in a storm that doesn't go his way because he is so tired, even though he plays better than expected. Coach Lamb, who has looked the other way, also runs into trouble, and Zeno doesn't speak up. Will Zeno be able to make things right so that he can continue at the school, or will he
Strengths: This is middle grade sports wish fulfillment at its finest. Of course Zeno gets picked to go to a spectacular sports school. He's a great player, so his adult life will find him playing professional ball right out of college, getting huge signing bonuses, and making an enormous amount of money after going through college on a full scholarship. While I'm not a fan of selling this dream to my students, it will definitely get them reading! The buried treasure gave this a bit of a New Kid vibe, and I did appreciate the flawed by present parents, the crush on Rachel, and the fact that everything ended happily. The cover alone will ensure that this title is constantly checked out, like most of Green's happier football titles.
Weaknesses: I could have done without the whole plot arc surrounding the buried treasure. It does lead to a satisfying conclusion, but I found it hard to believe that Coach Lamb knew about Zeno's escapades and allowed him to continue. Archie's severe flatulence didn't appeal to me, but will be a huge hit with the target demographic.
What I really think: This is an even more exciting version of Whitaker's Snap Decision, where a younger middle schooler gets a chance to play on a high school team. The characters all read like they were in high school, especially Tod. This is a great choice for middle grade readers, who love to read about high school sports players. If you don't know about Tim Green's story, you should look into his new podcast, Nothing Left Unsaid. I'm assuming that he wrote this book by typing it with his eyes, in the same way he wrote Final Season, which is one of the few sports books that teachers AND students will like. There's enough sadness to make the football palatable to adults.
Maraniss, Andrew and Tandon, Aishwary(illustrator)
Hut! Hut! Hike!: A Branches Book
September 2, 2025 by Scholastic Inc.
Nine year old Jasper loves to play living room football with his father, but when the two break a vase, the mother puts a stop to it. His friend, Mo Garcia, is not allowed to play football at all (his mother' thinks it is too dangerous, and rightly so!), so the two play a game with football trading cards. It's just not the same, so they ask their friend Ruby for ideas. She's seen a flyer for a flag football team being started by Coach Sanders at the community center. Over two dozen kids try out for a dozen positions. Jasper starts to realize that he doesn't know a lot about football rules, and outside of his living room, isn't a great player. Still, he and both of his friends make the team. They come up with their name, the Dart Frogs, and the parents lean heavily into this with t shirts and stuffed mascots. The friends, along with players like Nick, pay close attention to practice and have a big game against the Beagles. Things are looking dire, but Jasper manages to save the day and make the winning touchdown. The book ends with discussion questions and activities.
Strengths: The Branches series offers chapter books that are just perfect for emerging readers. The text is large, the stories simple but engaging, and the illustrations effective in helping to support the text. I loved that while Jasper thought he was so good at living room football, he didn't really know all that much about the sport and struggled when it came to playing in a league. It was also good to see that a number of girls, including Ruby, were on the team. Maraniss has done some fantastic work for older readers, like Strong Inside : Perry Wallace and the Collision of Race and Sports in the South, Singled Out: The True Story of Glenn Burke, and Inaugural Ballers: The True Story of the First U.S. Women's Olympic Basketball Team, so it is very much appreciated that he has turned his talents to younger readers with titles like this and Beyond the Game: Maya Moore.
Weaknesses: I wouldn't have minded a tiny mention of why Mo's mother doesn't want him to play. Concussions in football are such a problem, and even the youngest readers should know about this danger before they become overly invested in the sport.
What I really think: There are relatively few beginning reader books about football, other than the Jake Maddox books and titles by David A. Kelly and Rich Wallace. In addition to a fun story, this had a lot of additional material about football rules, illustrations of the field, and player biographies that will get young readers up and running when it comes to knowing all about their favorite sport.
Weaknesses: I could have done without the whole plot arc surrounding the buried treasure. It does lead to a satisfying conclusion, but I found it hard to believe that Coach Lamb knew about Zeno's escapades and allowed him to continue. Archie's severe flatulence didn't appeal to me, but will be a huge hit with the target demographic.
What I really think: This is an even more exciting version of Whitaker's Snap Decision, where a younger middle schooler gets a chance to play on a high school team. The characters all read like they were in high school, especially Tod. This is a great choice for middle grade readers, who love to read about high school sports players. If you don't know about Tim Green's story, you should look into his new podcast, Nothing Left Unsaid. I'm assuming that he wrote this book by typing it with his eyes, in the same way he wrote Final Season, which is one of the few sports books that teachers AND students will like. There's enough sadness to make the football palatable to adults.
Hut! Hut! Hike!: A Branches Book
September 2, 2025 by Scholastic Inc.
Nine year old Jasper loves to play living room football with his father, but when the two break a vase, the mother puts a stop to it. His friend, Mo Garcia, is not allowed to play football at all (his mother' thinks it is too dangerous, and rightly so!), so the two play a game with football trading cards. It's just not the same, so they ask their friend Ruby for ideas. She's seen a flyer for a flag football team being started by Coach Sanders at the community center. Over two dozen kids try out for a dozen positions. Jasper starts to realize that he doesn't know a lot about football rules, and outside of his living room, isn't a great player. Still, he and both of his friends make the team. They come up with their name, the Dart Frogs, and the parents lean heavily into this with t shirts and stuffed mascots. The friends, along with players like Nick, pay close attention to practice and have a big game against the Beagles. Things are looking dire, but Jasper manages to save the day and make the winning touchdown. The book ends with discussion questions and activities.
Strengths: The Branches series offers chapter books that are just perfect for emerging readers. The text is large, the stories simple but engaging, and the illustrations effective in helping to support the text. I loved that while Jasper thought he was so good at living room football, he didn't really know all that much about the sport and struggled when it came to playing in a league. It was also good to see that a number of girls, including Ruby, were on the team. Maraniss has done some fantastic work for older readers, like Strong Inside : Perry Wallace and the Collision of Race and Sports in the South, Singled Out: The True Story of Glenn Burke, and Inaugural Ballers: The True Story of the First U.S. Women's Olympic Basketball Team, so it is very much appreciated that he has turned his talents to younger readers with titles like this and Beyond the Game: Maya Moore.
Weaknesses: I wouldn't have minded a tiny mention of why Mo's mother doesn't want him to play. Concussions in football are such a problem, and even the youngest readers should know about this danger before they become overly invested in the sport.
What I really think: There are relatively few beginning reader books about football, other than the Jake Maddox books and titles by David A. Kelly and Rich Wallace. In addition to a fun story, this had a lot of additional material about football rules, illustrations of the field, and player biographies that will get young readers up and running when it comes to knowing all about their favorite sport.
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