It's
Marvelous Middle Grade Monday
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and #IMWAYR day
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A little more personality leaked into this review than usual, which just means that the writing made me FEEL things. Either that, or it's an indication that I wrote this on the last day before winter break and I am feeling the strain of having to say things to students like "Please don't touch other people's pants" and "Let's not make emergency noises in nonemergent situations".
March 24, 2026 by Pajama Press
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
Liam LOVES sports. He is on several teams with his best friend Marcus, and the two hope to apply to the prestigious Camp Jackman for the summer. Liam feels very connected to his grandfather who has recently passed away, and feels that attending the camp would honor his legacy. The grandfather played soccer for the Nation Team, and went to the camp in 1977. Liam's parents support his efforts, but have lately been busy caring for his five-year-old sister Lily, who was recently diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. When Liam does not make the baseball team (and Marcus does), he is in a difficult position. In order to apply to the camp, he needs to be on two sports teams that decide members through tryouts, but has only played soccer. He thinks about joining a local swimming team, but when he finds that obnoxious new student Jayson is on it, declines. He's on the shorter side, and doesn't make the school basketball team. He thinks about joining an intramural team, but never quite makes that happen. In the meantime, he has school projects, class activities with Mr. Young, and a possible romance with Izzie. There's friend drama with Marcus: Liam feels awkward because his friend will go to camp while he will not, but it turns out that Marcus feel ignored by Liam, and thinks that Liam would rather be friends with the girl-obsesses Sami. After a classroom incident involving stealing gum, Liam is held back for after school detention, making him late for track tryouts. This ruins his last chance at applying to the camp, although the track coach was impressed by his performance. Liam even e mails Camp Jackman, hoping they will bend the rules for him. They won't, but invite him to apply next year. Since he is invited to participate in the Blue Hornets elite track team, he is well on his way to his next application.
Strengths: It is hard to describe exactly how all-consuming sports can be for middle school students. I've seen many kids like Liam who play multiple sports, both at school and on the club level, and who think that they can make a career playing sports. Liam is willing to participate in just about any sport, and it was great that he found he had a talent for running. (But not surprising; my best cross country runners often had soccer backgrounds.) The friend drama with Marcus was perfect; it's hard when a friend excels at something when one is struggling. The inclusion of family issues, with Lily's health, makes the parents' support of Liams' endeavors even more meaningful. The portrayal of middle school romance is absolutely spot on, from Sami's interest in all the girls, to the trend of having shoelaces portray relationship status, to Liam breaking up with Izzie because he doesn't want to go out with anyone. While Liam doesn't get to go to camp, there is a bright spot when he gets to be on he elite track team, so this was hopeful while not ignoring the struggles tweens face. I'm very interested to see other books by Leitch.
Weaknesses: This is set in Canada, so maybe school rules are different there. At my school, Mr. Long would be out of a job for not watching his class on multiple occasions! We're not even allowed to let students sit in the hallway outside a classroom unsupervised. If a student is sick, we have to call the office or find a teacher on hall duty to take the student to the clinic. We also can't assign detentions for the same day as an infraction, because how would the student get home if a bus were missed? Our families are given at least a week's notice if students are kept after school, and detentions are given only for cumulative behavior, not just for one instance. They are issued by the assistant principal, not teachers. Young readers won't mind these details, but they really bothered me, especially since major plot points revolved around them.
What I really think: I think the fact that I had some personal issues with this book stemmed from the fact that I really liked it and need this book for my students. I'm definitely buying a copy, even though it stung more than a little that the grandfather was exactly my age and DEAD! Authors, authors! Let's increase dramatic tension in stories by keeping relatives alive and having tweens argue with them. What if the parents had supported Liam no matter what he did, but the grandfather put pressure on him to excel? Much more interesting. The Setback had some of the same feel of Wallace's great 2010 Sports Camp, and is the book I would expect if the extraordinary sports writer Fred Bowen teamed up to write a book with the fabulous tween romance writer G.F. Miller.
Liam LOVES sports. He is on several teams with his best friend Marcus, and the two hope to apply to the prestigious Camp Jackman for the summer. Liam feels very connected to his grandfather who has recently passed away, and feels that attending the camp would honor his legacy. The grandfather played soccer for the Nation Team, and went to the camp in 1977. Liam's parents support his efforts, but have lately been busy caring for his five-year-old sister Lily, who was recently diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. When Liam does not make the baseball team (and Marcus does), he is in a difficult position. In order to apply to the camp, he needs to be on two sports teams that decide members through tryouts, but has only played soccer. He thinks about joining a local swimming team, but when he finds that obnoxious new student Jayson is on it, declines. He's on the shorter side, and doesn't make the school basketball team. He thinks about joining an intramural team, but never quite makes that happen. In the meantime, he has school projects, class activities with Mr. Young, and a possible romance with Izzie. There's friend drama with Marcus: Liam feels awkward because his friend will go to camp while he will not, but it turns out that Marcus feel ignored by Liam, and thinks that Liam would rather be friends with the girl-obsesses Sami. After a classroom incident involving stealing gum, Liam is held back for after school detention, making him late for track tryouts. This ruins his last chance at applying to the camp, although the track coach was impressed by his performance. Liam even e mails Camp Jackman, hoping they will bend the rules for him. They won't, but invite him to apply next year. Since he is invited to participate in the Blue Hornets elite track team, he is well on his way to his next application.
Strengths: It is hard to describe exactly how all-consuming sports can be for middle school students. I've seen many kids like Liam who play multiple sports, both at school and on the club level, and who think that they can make a career playing sports. Liam is willing to participate in just about any sport, and it was great that he found he had a talent for running. (But not surprising; my best cross country runners often had soccer backgrounds.) The friend drama with Marcus was perfect; it's hard when a friend excels at something when one is struggling. The inclusion of family issues, with Lily's health, makes the parents' support of Liams' endeavors even more meaningful. The portrayal of middle school romance is absolutely spot on, from Sami's interest in all the girls, to the trend of having shoelaces portray relationship status, to Liam breaking up with Izzie because he doesn't want to go out with anyone. While Liam doesn't get to go to camp, there is a bright spot when he gets to be on he elite track team, so this was hopeful while not ignoring the struggles tweens face. I'm very interested to see other books by Leitch.
Weaknesses: This is set in Canada, so maybe school rules are different there. At my school, Mr. Long would be out of a job for not watching his class on multiple occasions! We're not even allowed to let students sit in the hallway outside a classroom unsupervised. If a student is sick, we have to call the office or find a teacher on hall duty to take the student to the clinic. We also can't assign detentions for the same day as an infraction, because how would the student get home if a bus were missed? Our families are given at least a week's notice if students are kept after school, and detentions are given only for cumulative behavior, not just for one instance. They are issued by the assistant principal, not teachers. Young readers won't mind these details, but they really bothered me, especially since major plot points revolved around them.
What I really think: I think the fact that I had some personal issues with this book stemmed from the fact that I really liked it and need this book for my students. I'm definitely buying a copy, even though it stung more than a little that the grandfather was exactly my age and DEAD! Authors, authors! Let's increase dramatic tension in stories by keeping relatives alive and having tweens argue with them. What if the parents had supported Liam no matter what he did, but the grandfather put pressure on him to excel? Much more interesting. The Setback had some of the same feel of Wallace's great 2010 Sports Camp, and is the book I would expect if the extraordinary sports writer Fred Bowen teamed up to write a book with the fabulous tween romance writer G.F. Miller.
Skateboards: A Graphic History
January 1, 2026 by Graphic Universe ™
Copy provided by the publisher
January 1, 2026 by Graphic Universe ™
Copy provided by the publisher
There are always young readers who skateboard, but there are very few books that tie in to this interest. Having a graphic nonfiction title is a perfect way to deliver this interesting history.
While most people know about the tie-in to California surf culture and the 1960s resurgence in the sport, the early 1900s background may be surprising. Creating ones own toys was always fun, so seeing boxes and old roller skate wheels made into scooters, and boards used for baking buns made into skateboards didn't surprise me at all, but I don't know that children today produce as many of their own amusements. The different technological developments are interesting; I need to know more about what a clay wheel is, since my involvement with skateboards didn't happen until the appearance of urethane wheels.
There was a lot of fun history of which I was not aware; a drought in Southern California in 1976, for example, led to a lot of empty swimming pools that were used to develop new tricks. Parkour style outdoor skating utilizing stairs and railings in public areas heated up in the 1980s, and the X Games and Tony Hawk took hold in the 1990s and early 2000s.
The illustrations all give a great feel for the styles and fashions of the time periods, and there is plenty of detail given to the evolution of skateboards themselves. There's even a bit of information about Vans shoes; I didn't realize that they were associated with skateboarding because the soles had extra gripping capabilities! This ends with a glossary, a few websites to visit, and a very helpful index.
My students will be very excited to see this book. Now, if there could be some middle grade novels about skateboarding like Spangler's Kickturn. Other than a few old Matt Christopher titles and some Jake Maddox books, there are few other choices.
Read 63 books in March. A little slow for me; I really am dedicated to reading just about all middle grade lit.
Don't you think SOMEONE in publishing might be just the tiniest bit curious about why I am only buying FOUR of the books I read?
Nyah. No one cares. They just want to keep publishing depressing stuff and then whine about why no one is buying middle grade. Grrr.
Nyah. No one cares. They just want to keep publishing depressing stuff and then whine about why no one is buying middle grade. Grrr.
And yes, I had an uninspiring spring break, and am heading into testing next week. Also, blocked someone on Goodreads who commented that a long synopsis of a book is not a review, and I merely suspected they might have been referencing my review. That's the current mood!
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