Language: (0 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: PG (beer offered to MC, drug dealers and gang activity SC); Violence: PG (Adult gets nose broken)
BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE
APPEALS TO: SEVERAL
12yo Otie is an athlete - but he runs track, so he doesn't get the recognition at school like the football or basketball team players do. In fact, he's bullied. When a boy makes fun of Otie's hair during a talent show comedy routine, Otie tries to give himself a hair cut. Of course it's a disaster, starting the ball rolling of one bit of trouble after another. His father is gone a lot, he is always thinking about how he can build a time machine to more quickly get to the olympics he's so sure he'll be part of. But a pair of expensive shoes gifted to him, may just become his undoing.
Set in 1985, Coach is about a childhood experience of Coach, mentor and trainer of Ghost, Lu, Patina and Sunny of the track team the Defenders. I'm giving this a higher rating that I would if it was an independent novel. The "Ghost" series is so popular it's a necessity to purchase this one as readers will ask for it and read it. However, it didn't have the excitement, the danger, the engagement of the rest of the books in the series. I felt like I was missing something; should I have re-read Ghost or the others to better appreciate this sequel (prequel?)? I was not drawn in by Otie - I felt he was ordinary - I didn't care a lot about the character, and found the ending another example of things happening to the character that are out of his control, rather than experiencing consequences for his actions or lessons he could learn. And, if you didn't know it was part the series, calling it Coach could make the reader think the title character is someone else.
The characters are black.
Lisa Librarian
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