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The Comeback Season

by Jennifer E. Smith (Goodreads Author)

3.79 of 5 stars 3.79 · rating details · 487 ratings · 94 reviews

The last place Ryan Walsh should be this afternoon is on a train heading to Wrigley Field. She should be in class, enduring yet another miserable day of her first year of high school. But for once, Ryan isn't thinking about what she should be doing. She's not worried about her lack of friends, or her suffering math grade, or how it's been five whole years since the last ti...more

Paperback, Reprint edition, 256 pages

Published February 23rd 2010 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers (first published March 4th 2008)

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Jan 22, 2011 oliviasbooks rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult-fiction, ya-contemporary, read-2011, love-story-romance, stays-with-me, cry-a-little, favorites-of-2011, scb-challenge-2011

'Hi,' he says.
'Hi,' she says back, and then to her great surprise, she begins to cry.
'You know,' Nick says as he hands her a tissue from the bedside table,' for all this talk about how you don't cry, you sure are sprouting a lot of water.'

This could be a conversation between me and one of my friends: What is is with me and my dripping eyes lately? I always used to read reviews of books I loved but survived with all my lashes still encased in an immaculate layer of mascara and wonder what made my...more 'Hi,' he says.
'Hi,' she says back, and then to her great surprise, she begins to cry.
'You know,' Nick says as he hands her a tissue from the bedside table,' for all this talk about how you don't cry, you sure are sprouting a lot of water.'

This could be a conversation between me and one of my friends: What is is with me and my dripping eyes lately? I always used to read reviews of books I loved but survived with all my lashes still encased in an immaculate layer of mascara and wonder what made my fellow readers' tears spill when I didn't even feel the tell-tale burning. "The Comeback Season" is the third book this year already that had me sniffing almost non-stop and my husband, who tried to practice a really difficult piece on the guitar, to cluck his tongue with slightly annoyed pity.

Jennifer E. Smith has this very distinct voice. I've admired it already in You Are Here. It peels away your protective layers and rubs an already sore spot.

I wanted so badly to say to Ryan, the fifteen-years-old heroine, that things would get back on track eventually, but I knew she wouldn't listen to me. In contrast to her mom, who remarried, and her sister Emily, who was only three in the year of the accident, Ryan ist still not able to go forward with her life. Her view is directed back. She longs for a chance to turn back the dial to the pre-loss era of her family and resents her mom for changing dad-induced family traditions and trying to be happy with tea-drinking insurance guy and golfer Kevin. Somehow Ryan broke apart from her two best friends, who shielded and comforted her during her dark times, but made up their minds to work hard at scoring in-crowd spots at High School lately. When newcomer Nick, a fan of the underdog baseball team, the Cubs, too, actively seeks out Ryan's company inspite of his own popularity, Ryan holds back - already too used to be alone, to munch over this season's possibilities for the Cubs and her dad's would be predictions and bargains: Dad had the habit to promise outrageous things (like becoming a part-time vegetarian or walking to work) to fate should the Cubs win a game. As Ryan dares to give in to Nick's perstistent attempts at friendship - and romance - but detects a terrible secret, she spontaneously offers her own Cubs-related bargain to the baseball-gods - inspite of Nick insisting he does not believe in luck and dad's voice saying that losing points is the fun of a game, because "You never know when there might be a comeback". (view spoiler) I wracked my brain after finishing to read and after erasing the last traces of my tears if the amount of offered hope and the degree of positive changes in the heroine's view on life had made the cut of what I demand from an outstanding book. I had to admit they didn’t really, but I am still puzzlingly satisfied and need to press the five-stars button. What on earth happened to my loathing of overly sad stories? Can you tell me?

I recommend to read this book.

TBR Pile Reduction Challenge 2011 Book #5 (challenger: Tina)(less)

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Oct 26, 2008 Kristi (The Story Siren) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ryan is accustomed to loss. Her father passed away five years ago, she doesn’t relate to her best friends anymore, and she is a Cubs fan. The anniversary of her father’s death happens to land on opening day, so Ryan skips school to go to the game. This is where she meets Nick. Another Cubs fan and also a new kid from her school. Thus, starting their friendship.

Nick’s friendship and the Cubs good fortune transform Ryan into the person she was before she let herself be dulled with grief. Nick relu...more

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Sep 19, 2012 Ashley rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012-september, library

I really loved Jennifer E. Smith's book The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, and was looking forward to reading more by her. Though I was a little wary of all the baseball (and there was a lot), I didn't find that it bored me, or took up most of the story. I mean, yes, the Cubs play a MAJOR role in the book, however it works well with the story. And as a non-sports fan, it was all right.

I really liked watching Ryan and Nick's relationship evolve, I liked how they both dealt with...more

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Jun 01, 2012 Bethany rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is 4 stars with reservations; it probably is more accurate to give it 3.5.

To start with, this book had two strikes (ha ha--get it? Strikes? A book about baseball?) going against it on the very first page. Number one: it is written in third person/present tense. I HATE that. I find it absolutely awkward to read. It says a lot about the emotion in the book that I actually finished it. Number two: it's a book about the Chicago Cubs, a team for which I feel no pity and a mild or quite strong h...more This is 4 stars with reservations; it probably is more accurate to give it 3.5.

To start with, this book had two strikes (ha ha--get it? Strikes? A book about baseball?) going against it on the very first page. Number one: it is written in third person/present tense. I HATE that. I find it absolutely awkward to read. It says a lot about the emotion in the book that I actually finished it. Number two: it's a book about the Chicago Cubs, a team for which I feel no pity and a mild or quite strong hatred, depending on my mood.

Ryan is dealing with the death of her father five years ago and her mother's remarriage. She doesn't mind her stepfather but he is very different from her father, plus her sister is so much younger that she views the stepfather as her actual father. On the fifth anniversary of his death, Ryan skips school and heads to Wrigley Field, where she meets Nick, a new guy at her high school. I liked Ryan as a character. She dealt with heavy stuff and I didn't feel that she turned into the cliche "angry teen." She had her moments, but those moments were realistic. Emotion drives this book and I latched onto that emotion. (Baseball is peppered throughout; I don't think it would turn someone away who didn't like baseball...but I love baseball, so I loved the baseball reference.) Her relationship with Nick progressed realistically and the real connection between them was nice to read in YA lit. Sometimes there is a lacking of that.

What I didn't like about the book? The emotion. Ha. Doesn't make much sense since that is what drove me to continue the book, but by the end of the book, I felt manipulated. I don't expect all books to be happy-go-lucky -- and I'm also not going to spoil the ending -- but I felt that it would have been better to leave this open-ended. Smith closes up the story in the last few pages, but the better ending was before that. There were also moments when the introspective feel of the book became difficult...and long. With such heavy subjects, I could have done without such descriptions of Ryan's feelings at every turn.

Still, in the end it was a book I read in one sitting and shed some tears while doing so. The situations Ryan deals with mature her and I appreciate the strength she shows at the end. I would not recommend this book, however, if you only like happy-ending romances.(less)

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Dec 28, 2011 Joy (joyous reads) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own

I always have a difficult time reviewing books about grief - this book in particular, is even harder. I can't quite reconcile my feelings toward the main character. On the one hand, I truly feel for her. Ryan's inability to move forward five years after her father's death deserves all my sympathy. On the other, and forgive me if I may sound a bit callous, but to be inside Ryan's head was painful in a way that didn't have anything to do with her grief. We see her struggle day in and day out with...more I always have a difficult time reviewing books about grief - this book in particular, is even harder. I can't quite reconcile my feelings toward the main character. On the one hand, I truly feel for her. Ryan's inability to move forward five years after her father's death deserves all my sympathy. On the other, and forgive me if I may sound a bit callous, but to be inside Ryan's head was painful in a way that didn't have anything to do with her grief. We see her struggle day in and day out with the memories of her dad, the life lessons he'd imparted through baseball euphemisms, and everybody else's capability to move on, leaving her seemingly stagnant in her own depressed state. I wanted to take her by the shoulders and tell her to snap out of it. I wanted her to see that whatever she was doing was the exact opposite of how her father would want her to do. I get it, truly I do. You cannot possibly know what a person is going through unless you've actually been there. But that doesn't mean that she had my full empathy.

This book is really about life's inevitable disappointments - and what better way to immortalize life's heartaches than the Cubs' merry-go-round of curses and heartbreaks? I'm a bit of a sports nut myself, so I understand the emotions we go through with every wins and every losses. I just have never actually applied it in reality. The author either did her homework well, or she wrote from experience. This book is rich in sports history and psychology euphemisms - some a bit more clichéd than others. But the beauty of it all is that the author, in one way or another, gave it a fresh new take that it didn't induce some justified eye rolls.

I also loved that even though Ryan was always on the outside looking in, she couldn't care less either way. She didn't spend her time grumbling about her isolation in school and at home, she just accepted it the way it is. It was her choice, after all. And really, this is where I'm feeling the most conflicted about our character. I have this certain admiration for her but at the same time, it wasn't easy to ignore her defeatist attitude.

A lot of people have cried over this book; it was an emotional read after all. I would too had I known Nick's eventual fate. And I don't know, it was just not as draining a read as I thought it would be. I also wish that the author didn't leave the ending in such a manner. It was vague that I didn't get any resolution. But you need to read this book and take it for what it is.(less)

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Jul 31, 2009 Elizabeth K. rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2008-new-reads

This was a little disappointing. I had been eager to pick it up after reading a blurb somewhere about this YA novel about Cubs fans. For some reason on which even I am not entirely clear, I know a lot of Cubs fans, so I thought this would be a fun read and then I could pass it along to someone else who would appreciate it. Now, I'm not sure it's worth sharing, it's too maudlin.

The basic set-up is that high school freshman Ryan's love of the Cubs was instilled by her dad, who died when she was 10...more

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Dec 12, 2009 Jenna rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, read-in-2009

I kind of have mixed feelings on this book. I liked the baseball aspect of it, though it was a little hard to get behind the Cubs. I’m don’t have a lot of love for the Lovable Losers. But I totally understand Nick and Ryan’s (and her dad’s) love for the team. I’ve been a Braves fan for as long as I can remember, so I’ve spent a lot of time cheering for them no matter the outcome of the season. I mean, seriously – 14 Division titles in a row with only one World Series? And now they’re not even ge...more

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Sep 29, 2011 Brooke rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: i-own-a-copy, kindle, death-tragedy-suicide, realistic-fiction, tugged-the-heartstrings, favourites, lovey-mushy-stuff, taught-me-a-lesson

Well. This is book two by Jennifer E. Smith for me, and I wasn't disappointed. She has this way of writing that just makes you feel, sucks you into the story, tumbles your insides around with her words, makes you laugh and cry and sight contentedly when you're finished reading.

The Comeback Season just about ripped my heart out, I don't think I've been so moved by a book in a long while! You know that feeling of incredible loss? Heartbreak? That gut churning, throat tightening sensation? I experi...more

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Nov 19, 2009 Carmen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own-it, signed-books, marked-up-by-author, won-it

So here's the honest truth, perhaps to the disappoint of baseball-fan Jennifer Smith, I don't watch baseball. At all. Honestly, I don't watch sports at all. Besides the Olympics. But that's different. Despite this fact though, I loved the novel. I loved the characters, and practically fell in love with Nick myself. As for Ryan, well, though I'm not a baseball fan like her, or have suffered the loss of my father, I found myself relating to her in other ways. Those feelings when friends turn their...more

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Oct 20, 2012 Alex rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary, tearjearker, teen-ya

At First Sight: Ryan Walsh should be at school, enduring yet another awful day of Freshman year, but instead she's riding the train toward Wrigley Field. It's opening day for the Cubs. And it's also the 5th anniversary of her father's passing.

Since it felt like a sign, Ryan decided to go down to the stadium, filled with hope for once in the last five years. Once there she's unable to get in but ends up sitting outside the stadium with Nick, the new kid in her school.

Nick loves the Cubs almost...more At First Sight: Ryan Walsh should be at school, enduring yet another awful day of Freshman year, but instead she's riding the train toward Wrigley Field. It's opening day for the Cubs. And it's also the 5th anniversary of her father's passing.

Since it felt like a sign, Ryan decided to go down to the stadium, filled with hope for once in the last five years. Once there she's unable to get in but ends up sitting outside the stadium with Nick, the new kid in her school.

Nick loves the Cubs almost as much as Ryan does, and it's their shared love for the team the basis of their tentative friendship. With Nick, Ryan can talk or can be silent and it's all good. He doesn't know her secrets and doesn't try to get them out of her.

Because Nick, he has his secrets too.

Second Glance: I stayed up last night reading The Comeback Season and I'm going to start by saying that, well... THERE IS NO CRYING IN BASEBALL!!! But damn it, this book made me cry. Honestly, I wouldn't have picked up this book if I had known it was going to be so sad.

From the cover, I thought it would be a fluffy book with a little bit of romance and baseball, but it wasn't really like that. Ryan has been through a lot of sadness and she uses said sadness as a shield to keep herself at a distance from the world, trying not to get hurt. Particularly now that her friends have dumped her for a more popular crowd.

In some ways Nick becomes her life line, and it's because of him that she starts to open up a little. They both love the Cubs but in different ways and for different reasons that kind of reflect their approches to life.

I really liked the story over all, even though it was sad. A lot of it is about Ryan learning to let go of the bad things while keeping the good, and that part was really well done. But there were a few things that kept the book from being perfect for me.

To start with, it's hard to connect to Ryan at first because the book is told in Third person- present tense and it made it hard to get into the story. And while I get why Ryan and Nick are important to each other, the development of their relationship was choppy. Finally, there are times when there is a lot of info-dump regarding the Cubs's history.

Bottom Line: In the end, I enjoyed The Comeback Season a lot, and it got to me - it made me cry - but there were many things that I didn't enjoy so much. Still, I'm glad I read the book because once you get into it, you really do feel for Ryan and Nick.

Favorite Quote: "It's OK to have doubts, even as you hope." Nick(less)

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Dec 14, 2008 Abby Johnson rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ryan's dad died five years ago and she's been a little lost since then. Now she's a freshman in high school and her best friends have ditched her, trying for a spot in the popular clique instead. When her mom and stepdad announce that they're going to have a baby, Ryan feels like everything's changing... and not in a good way. She ditches school to go to Wrigley Field on the Cubs' opening day and that's where she meets Nick, a boy who will help her find herself again. But Nick's got a secret tha...more

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Aug 18, 2012 Handoah rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

Personally I loved this book. Everyone has different opinions, but I found this book absolutely beautiful and amzing. The characters were so realistic. In some books the characters just don't feel real, but Ryan and Nick felt as real as my own best friends. People can complain all they want about how Ryan is annoying for being obessessed with the past, but let's face it, she misses her dad. I find it unrealistic in books when someone dies and three days later everyone is a-okay.
The story was be...more

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Apr 30, 2013 Sara rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I usually love baseball books, but this wasn't really about baseball. Also, I kept wanting to call BS -- the author writes about Cubs baseball and Wrigley Field like they're grandiose and sacred, but having lived in Wrigleyville for several years, I associate both with impossible traffic and a big group of drunk suburbanites who are loud, sunburned and bad at putting trash into the proper receptacles. Anyway -- if you take out my personal feelings and the boring historical stuff, the rest of the...more

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Feb 17, 2013 Leigh Kramer rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As a diehard White Sox fan, I didn't know what to expect from a novel centered on a Cubs fan and yet I couldn't put The Comeback Season down. Five years after Ryan's father dies, she's still adrift and searching for where she belongs when an unexpected friendship begins at Wrigley Field. Themes of grief, loneliness, hope, and belonging are instantly relatable. Given the start of Spring Training, it was fun to relive the 2008 season, even if it was from the wrong side of town. (Though I relished...more

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Jan 22, 2009 Kris rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: bookreviewcenter, youngadult

Recommended for upper middle school and high school. Nothing inappropriate for younger grades, I just don't think they'd find it interesting. High school freshman Ryan has felt out of place since her father died five years ago. She and her friends have drifted apart, and her mother has remarried. When she decides to visit Wrigley field on Opening Day to try to bring back memories of happy times with her father, she meets Nick, who is also skipping school to be there. They form a comfortable bond...more

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Dec 04, 2012 Bree T rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

Ryan Walsh is fifteen and in her freshman year of high school. She’s cutting class to go to Opening Day at Wrigley Field, the start of yet another baseball season for the long-maligned team the Chicago Cubs. Baseball is a huge part of Ryan’s life, her father was a massive Cubs fan and had season tickets, taking her to many games, spending hours explaining the sad and disappointing history of them and what it is to be a Cubs fan. He died five years ago when Ryan was 10 and now baseball is the one...more Ryan Walsh is fifteen and in her freshman year of high school. She’s cutting class to go to Opening Day at Wrigley Field, the start of yet another baseball season for the long-maligned team the Chicago Cubs. Baseball is a huge part of Ryan’s life, her father was a massive Cubs fan and had season tickets, taking her to many games, spending hours explaining the sad and disappointing history of them and what it is to be a Cubs fan. He died five years ago when Ryan was 10 and now baseball is the one tenuous connection she has left to the father she adored so much.

It seems that everyone else has moved on: her mother has remarried, to a golf-playing tea-drinker named Kevin and they are expecting their first child together. Ryan’s little sister Emily was only three when their father died and she has little to no memory of him, Kevin is the only father she has ever known. Ryan feels like the memory of her father is slipping away, the only thing that keeps it clear for her are the Cubs, Wrigley Field and watching the players play ball.

On the day she skips, she runs into Nick, a kid from her math class who hasn’t been at the school long. Like her, he’s a passionate Cubs fan and they share information and joy as well as the sadness and sorrow that comes with following the Cubs. Nick and Ryan form a tentative friendship, despite the fact that Nick is popular already, despite having only been at the school some weeks and Ryan is an outcast, left behind by her friends from middle school who have been embraced by the popular girl. They share a love of something special and this draws them closer together as they share the secrets and fears of being a Cubs fan and of themselves.

The Comeback Season is one of two Jennifer E. Smith books I bought after reading and loving her most recent release, The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight. That book is easily one of my favourite YA reads of 2012 and I was keen to read more from the author who had given me such a fun experience with that book. This novel introduces us to Ryan, a freshman in high school struggling with the transition. Her two best friends have basically stopped speaking to her and spending time with her, preferring to instead spend their time with the school’s popular girl and she spends most lunches alone, near her locker. She still hasn’t dealt with the loss of her father five years ago, nor has she adjusted to the fact that her mother has been able to move on and marry another man, a man that Ryan resents simply for being there even though he has never done anything offensive to her or anyone else in her family. Although not outright hostile to Kevin, Ryan clearly isn’t welcoming and given she was a lot younger when her dad passed, this was more behaviour I’d expect from a teenager who had lost him recently. She also doesn’t react well to the news that her mother is expecting a baby although I believe that the day on which they announced it to her (the anniversary of her father’s death) was actually rather insensitive and it wouldn’t have hurt to wait a little longer to tell her. I’m actually not sure why either her mother OR Kevin would’ve thought that a good day to tell Ryan about a result of their new-found love would be the day that probably reminds her most of her father, that seemed either extremely ignorant and cruel or just stupid.

I’m not American so I don’t really ‘get’ baseball I’m afraid. It is played here, but it’s not very popular and I’m also sure that my high school days of playing softball for P.E twice a week for what felt like my entire lifetime but was really only year 8 also colours my perspective. I had three people in my class who played softball for the school and they were all crazy competitive and knew the rules and screamed at everyone when they weren’t hitting the ball right, or running between bases when they should or throwing the ball to the correct base. Um, we were 13, who the heck cares? I’m scarred for life by that experience. Anyway, there is a lot of baseball in this story, there’s a lot of history about the Cubs. It made my eyes glaze over a bit at times, especially when people were talking about the World Series in 1917 or whatever. I think I would’ve liked a lot less talking baseball from 100 years ago, even though it was relevant because of Ryan’s relationship with her dad, we didn’t need so much of it. I’d have liked more time exploring her feelings and friendship with Nick or more time spent with the members of her family. This is a short book, and given the situation with Nick that comes to light, more time would’ve been appreciated.

My other beef with this book is the ending. It’s left deliberately ambiguous with one sentence possibly meaning one thing, or it could be just perceived another way depending on how you read it. I re-read the last page several times and eventually came to a conclusion but I’m still not overly sure that I got it right. And that really annoys me because I hate open endings and sometimes it makes me feel like I read the whole book for nothing because after getting to know these characters, I don’t even know what happened to them.

I was disappointed by this book and I have to wonder if I just got lucky with The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight or if Smith’s books are improving each time. I will read her next release to see how that fits in with the others I’ve read so far. If you don’t love baseball, or aren’t prepared to love baseball, then maybe skip this one.(less)

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Apr 28, 2012 Christy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This one was hard to rate for me, I would actually say about 3.5 stars, I waffle on really liking because the ending although the realistic choice was still just not what I actually wanted to happen! The baseball in it was fabulous, because there are some books out there that try to achieve the feel but just let that be a background. The Cubs and Wrigley were such important factors in this book. Anyone that has been to Wrigley can certainly appreciate the descriptive details from the "L" ride th...more

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Sep 05, 2011 Michelle (FabbityFabBookReviews) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-young-adult

This is the first YA novel I have read by Smith. I was interested in reading this because Smith's upcoming 2012 release, The Statistical Probability of Love at First Site, is garnering lots of positive buzz.

This story's overall theme, if you will, is baseball. Well, okay, not baseball. But everything in this book- life lessons, metaphors, analogies, etc.,- can all be linked to baseball (and vice versa). Which is not to say you have to be a Cubs fan, or baseball fan to enjoy it. At the heart of R...more

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May 11, 2009 Nora rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: 7th grade and up

Recommended to Nora by: CPS Battle of the Books 08-09

Shelves: older-elementary, teen-fiction

The Chicago Cubs were a main part of the plot. I wonder if that was the reason it was a selection for Chicago Battle of the Books. It was otherwise a pretty ho-hum high school romance. Good, but I wasn't a huge fan of her writing style. I felt like I was reading as an outsider, analyzing the author's choices, rather than just being sucked into the plot. With such an emphasis on sports (and tons of stats on the Cubs), I wished it had been told from the boy's perspective because I could have sold...more

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Apr 01, 2013 Holly rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really need to talk about this book. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since I read it, it was amazing and beautifully written but I feel so sad.

Ryan’s father died 5 years ago and she is the only one in her family who hasn’t been able to properly move on. It’s the 8th of April and the opening day of the season for the Cubs. She used to watch all their games with her dad and decides to go and watch the game even though she should be in school. There she meets Nick, a boy from her ma...more I really need to talk about this book. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since I read it, it was amazing and beautifully written but I feel so sad.

Ryan’s father died 5 years ago and she is the only one in her family who hasn’t been able to properly move on. It’s the 8th of April and the opening day of the season for the Cubs. She used to watch all their games with her dad and decides to go and watch the game even though she should be in school. There she meets Nick, a boy from her math class who has recently joined the school. He’s also a huge Cubs fan and through their mutual love of the team they begin a friendship. Soon Nick will tell Ryan about his past and the reason his family moved to Chicago, once again her ability to deal with the terrible things life throws at people will be tested again.

Ok, so the ending of this book. I know realistically it was what was going to happen but it was so awful. I think it was the way it was done. Earlier in the book we get a small glimpse into the future, to explain this better the book is written in third person present tense. Earlier in the book the author tells you what will happen the next morning and that’s ok, I actually thought it was a really nice moment. However the way she delivers what will happen to Ryan and Nick, I can’t deal with that. I needed to read it, to see what happened, not just know it would. I know she tried to reconcile this with the last chapter but it just didn’t work for me. I took so much from this book, I cared what happened to Ryan and Nick and for her to tell us like that. Although in a way it was beautiful because it goes back to an earlier event in the book I needed more.

It was like so much had been invested in Ryan and Nick’s relationship and then that? I gave this book a 5 star rating because I know it will stick with me for a long time, I don’t even know anything about baseball but I loved the way background information about the Cubs was given throughout the book. But honestly, I’m not sure I’ll ever really be able to leave this book, it feels unfinished, like there is a space in between the penultimate and the last chapter that needs to be filled. I don’t normally hold on to books like this but I can’t stop thinking about it.

Don’t read this book if you want a perfectly resolved happily ever after because you wont get that, you will get an extremely raw and beautiful story about two people who through no fault of their own have really horrible things to deal with. The characters are amazing, they’re just ordinary teenagers, there’s nothing brilliant or unusual about them and that’s why it worked so well. Their relationship is perfect and so innocent, maybe that’s why it felt so strong. If you’re prepared to deal with the sadness then definitely read this book.

Review originally published on Holly Was Here

Edit: After rereading this I am actually satisfied with the last chapter. I think it fits with the style of the book and I was just on a complete emotional rollercoaster after reading it I couldn't see that.(less)

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Oct 16, 2012 Megan (The Book Babe) rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed-on-my-site

Due to copy and paste, formatting has been lost.

Apparently, it wasn't enough for this book to be mediocre until about halfway through, so they decided to make the ending a killer. Yes, this ending answers none of the questions that I have. It makes them worse. I know that the ending of this book will probably eat away at the very existence of my life, until I'm ready to go all psycho on it.

Guess what? The characters were mediocre, the story was mediocre (not to mention predictable), and overall, I'm not even sure why I even bothered to finish it. Because I really wasn't all that into it! I am scowling right now people! Scowling! I'm almost never scowl about books. (Movies yes, books no.)

So, let's move on to my character analysis. Ryan sucked. Straight up. She kept changing her mind about Nick, she was cliched, she skipped over importantish parts in her history, and overall, she just rubbed me the wrong way. Her step-dad has never done anything to her, and she basically treats him like dirt. She doesn't want to take him to a ball game, because she thinks he'll try and talk about golf (he does), but mostly, the annoying part was that she never really gave him a chance. She just assumed. She's basically a self-absorbed brat, that the author tried to make human--but failed miserably. (Also, why does she keep referring to herself in third-person?)

I just can't stand her, and I can go on for days about her failings as a character, but I will stop there. Nick, Nick, Nick. We have another cliched YA character here--popular guy who wants un-popular girl. That's one of the absolute worst cliches an author can write! We don't want to hear about an popular boy/un-popular girl getting together, then the crowd accepting her...no. Just no. Say it with me. "We don't want to hear about it! (just keep swimming, just keep swimming)" I mean, can it get worse than that? At least it wasn't a love triangle. I don't think I could've taken that.

Also, I often found myself trying to figure out how I got from one point to another. It seemed like the author just skipped from one point to another...it was awful. Let this be known though: I have no problem with this author. I quite liked The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight. But this one was different. Not near as good.

Ooh, I really need to stop now. Sorry guys, I just really, really need to calm down.

Favorite Quote:
But Ryan knows differently.
There aren't just two kinds of endings. It's not as simple as winning or losing. There's a space in between, and this is where most of us tend to live.
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Oct 18, 2012 Estelle rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: library-2012, young-adult, favorites, tissue-box

Review originally posted on Rather Be Reading Blog --

In some families, being born into a sport and a team is like a legacy. I could totally relate to Ryan and her dad’s affection for the Cubs. Sure, I was brought up a Yankees fan which is totally different because yes, we have won a lot of championships but I also remember sitting through many, many boring games in the 90s where they hardly won. But we stayed the whole game and still listened to the post-game on the way home. My dad taught me ho...more Review originally posted on Rather Be Reading Blog --

In some families, being born into a sport and a team is like a legacy. I could totally relate to Ryan and her dad’s affection for the Cubs. Sure, I was brought up a Yankees fan which is totally different because yes, we have won a lot of championships but I also remember sitting through many, many boring games in the 90s where they hardly won. But we stayed the whole game and still listened to the post-game on the way home. My dad taught me how to keep score. We were friends with all the people who sat in our section. Instead of going to church on Sundays, we went to home games at Yankee Stadium.

So I could understand how Ryan’s love of the Cubs and of her father were so closely intertwined. Jennifer E. Smith is a master of delving us into the depths of this 14-year old’s innermost thoughts. Her language is poetic and as relaxed, deliberate, and exciting as any great Friday night baseball game. Smith writes about the Cub’s history with such enthusiasm and fluidity throughout the novel and just an absolute love the game. One that brings people together like Ryan and her dad, and later, Ryan and Nick.

Ah, Ryan and Nick’s relationship. It’s quiet and different than other YA relationships I’ve read about. It’s not full of these huge epic gestures or plans or even that much expectation. For both Ryan and Nick, it’s about trusting the other person (for different reasons) and finding hope in dreadful situations. As the Cubs embark on the 100th year since winning their last World Series title, they are pretty much the perfect metaphor for many of the emotions running through the entire story. Why do the fans hang on like they do? How do the players continue to run out on that field day after day when they are never the chosen team? It’s all about getting up in the morning and moving forward. Any way you can.

My emotional reaction to The Comeback Season can only be a testament to Smith’s writing. I was completely invested in Ryan’s life as soon as the story began and even though it took me longer to read than other YAs, I had the pleasure of spending a substantial amount of time with this story. There is such passion behind the words, and so many gorgeous phrases I just wanted to never stop reading. It’s funny to go backwards when reading the work of one author, and I was absolutely blown away by this debut. It is a book that must find a home on my bookshelf and one that will be challenging to top…
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Jan 18, 2010 Lacey Crough rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, 2010-challenge

Baseball has always been my favorite past time. I grew up on it, my dad taking me to Triple A ballgames in Wichita, and helping on the grounds crew during summer tournaments in my home town. I'm no stranger to it and try to always catch a game when it's on. I've been tempted to even start my own fantasy league since Dad always did that when I was younger too. So, when I picked up this book, I was excited that it was not only a love story, but completely about baseball as well. And even though I'...more

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Sep 22, 2009 Dawn rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2008-ya-lit

Pretty well written, but too sad. Isn't one major life tragedy enough for one book and one girl?! The author has painfully accurate insight into how it feels to be unpopular and lonely in high school. I'm glad that the main character has enough personal integrity to be herself, hang in there, and realize that life won't always be this way. The interweaving of baseball and life is interesting. The narrative choice of using present tense, third person is unusual, but works. What I didn't like were...more

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Nov 22, 2008 Becky rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Smith, Jennifer E. 2008. The Comeback Season.

Opening Day at Wrigley Field isn't always April 8. It's not like Christmas or the Fourth of July, with their dependable calendar slots, the reassurance of a fixed number.

Ryan Walsh is a baseball loving teen who is still aching over the loss of her father--five years or so previous--her mother and sister may have moved on...her mother has remarried and is expecting a baby even. But Ryan can never forget her father--the man who taught her how to keep sc...more Smith, Jennifer E. 2008. The Comeback Season.

Opening Day at Wrigley Field isn't always April 8. It's not like Christmas or the Fourth of July, with their dependable calendar slots, the reassurance of a fixed number.

Ryan Walsh is a baseball loving teen who is still aching over the loss of her father--five years or so previous--her mother and sister may have moved on...her mother has remarried and is expecting a baby even. But Ryan can never forget her father--the man who taught her how to keep score while watching the game. The man who passed on his love for the Cubs. That the anniversary of his death should fall on Opening Day? A sign that she should skip school and go to the game.

Ryan is in many ways a girl after my own heart--"she doesn't care about makeup or jewelry, and has grown used to getting the once-over for her lack of fashion sense, an up-and-down stare reminiscent of the way her mom studies produce at the grocery store. Ryan prefers ponytails to curling irons, the soapy smell of her shampoo to the fruity ones all the other girls use. She feels most put together when wearing jeans, and she would never trade her flip-flops for a pair of heels. And mostly, she's okay with this." (27) And this telling passage as well--"Given the choice between future and past, she would always and without hesitation choose to move backward, and for years she has lingered through her life in this way, loitering and meandering, a wanderer with the most aimless of intentions." (38)

On that fateful day, April 8, Ryan meets Nick. Okay, so they've been going to the same school together. And true, she's seen him around enough to know that he's her classmate. But on this day--the two share a purpose--to catch the Cubs game. The two begin talking, chatting, and soon it looks like a beautiful friendship is born. Could it be more than friendship? Ryan certainly hopes so. There is an easiness, a rightness, about when they are together. Perhaps Nick says it best, "Sometimes I feel like talking to you is the same as talking to myself. Like you already know all there is to know, so there's no point in explaining..." (123) For Ryan to find love with Nick, she'll have to risk her heart--risk that it could be broken once more.

The Comeback Season is a bittersweet novel about life, love, hope, and redemption. You don't have to love baseball to love this novel. (Though if you do, it might mean that much more to you.) Ryan Walsh is a character that I won't soon be forgetting. I ache when she does. And her hope became my hope.

This is Jennifer E. Smith's first novel, and it is definitely recommended.

Other reviews: The Compulsive Reader, Not Acting My Age, TeenSpace Blog, Shooting Stars Mag, The Story Siren, Let(t)'er Rip, A Patchwork of Books.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews (less)

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Jul 23, 2008 Relyn rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: boys and girls who love baseball. girls who like love stories. teens dealing with loss.

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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May 03, 2008 Jennifer Wardrip rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: trt-posted-reviews

Reviewed by Lauren Ashley for TeensReadToo.com

Ryan Walsh is a girl who loves the Chicago Cubs. It's not just about baseball to her, though. It's more about her dad, who passed away when she was ten years old, who sparked her love for the team. She's a freshmen in high school now, and the year didn't turn out quite how she wanted it to, with her drifting further apart from her grade school friends, Kate and
Sydney.

Everything changes for Ryan on Opening Day, when she goes to Wrigley Field to try...more

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Mar 14, 2011 'Chele rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book is no Pride and Prejudice, but is still a good story! Ryan loses her dad and feels like her family also. A big part of her life before her dad's accident were spent with him watching Chicago Cubs baseball games (whether on TV or better, at Wrigley Field). She meets Nick, a boy with his own sad story, and the two become close. Good YA novel especially if you get the whole rooting for the Cubs no matter how they play and the ambiance of Wrigley Field.

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Jun 30, 2008 Fluxbrarian rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: baseball fans, girls, 6th-8th grade

Shelves: middle-school

In this poignant debut novel, Chicago Cubs fandom is used as a metaphor for having unwavering faith despite bleak outlooks. Ryan, a diehard Cubs fan, meets new boy Nick, an equally devoted fan, and the two become close friends. Ryan is still struggling with the death of her father (also a Cubs fan), and then discovers that her new friend is in remission for cancer. SLJ criticizes Ryan’s irrational thoughts saying it “strains even the most willing suspension of disbelief,” but I think it's in per...more

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Apr 22, 2013 Robin rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-fiction

I loved this author's latest two books so I thought I would try one of her earlier ones. Picking it up, I knew it had baseball in it. But I had no idea how much baseball was in it. For someone who really dislikes baseball (and doesn't understand being obsessed with a team either), this was a tough read. I'll admit I skimmed several sections. But I did enjoy the characters. Also, I read this right after reading John Green's The Fault in Your Stars. This one couldn't live up to that.

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About Jennifer E. Smith

Jennifer E. Smith is the author of The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, The Storm Makers, You Are Here, and The Comeback Season. She earned her master's degree in creative writing from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, and currently works as an editor in New York City. Her writing has been translated into 28 languages.

More about Jennifer E. Smith...

Books by Jennifer E. Smith

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight

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Quotes from The Comeback Season

“She understands now what she, in all her worry, had forgotten. That even as she hesitates and wavers, even as she thinks too much and moves too cautiously, she doesn't always have to get it right. It's okay to look back, even as you move forward.” — 25 people liked it

“Emily tucks her knees up beneath her and leans forward on the table. 'Do you like Ryan?' she asks Nick, and Mom's eyes go wide. Kevin chokes a little on his water. Mortified, Ryan looks away, holding her breath.
Nick turns to Emily, and with mock seriousness, leans down to consult with her. 'Do you like Ryan?'
Emily considers this a moment, tapping a finger against her lips in thought. 'I guess most of the time,' she says finally. 'I guess she's okay.'
'Then I think so too' he says, turning back to the rest of the table. He winks at Ryan. 'We've decided you're okay.'
She breathes out. 'I can live with that.” — 11 people liked it

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