Striker Boy

by Jonny Zucker

Nat has grown up travelling around the world with his Dad. He's played football everywhere they've lived and honed his skills on the beaches of Rio de Janeiro. Now they are settling back at home in England. Then at a 'community' day at his favourite football team, Hatton Rangers, currently struggling at the bottom of the Premiership, Nat's talent is spotted by the club's scout. To his and his father's amazement, he finds himself talking to the manager about a place on the first team squad. There is just the little detail of his age - he's big for 13 but surely they can't get away with him posing as a 16-year-old, the minimum age for a professional player? But the club's veteran striker takes an immediate dislike to Nat and warns him off trying to get a place on the team. Nat's suspicions are aroused and soon he begins to think there is something more to Hatton Rangers' poor performance, and a local reporter begins to have suspicions about Nat. What seems like every boy's dream is quickly confronted by the tough reality of the world of professional football in this superbly exciting thriller.

Genres: Childrens

336 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2010

Reviews

[Eleanor Abbott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I used this book in an intervention group with 3 Year 5 boys and it was an excellent and engaging story line that brought them all together. It subtly covers the topic of Mental Health considered in relation to a family death, which gave the opportunity for the boys to think deeper about the everyday life of a child and their passion for football. One of the most prominent things we considered was the "right" or "wrong" thing to do and what they thought was morally correct. This was extremely interesting to hear and really contributed to developing their understanding and opinions. A thoroughly enjoyable book! (even for those that are not a fan of football like myself!)

[Eve Lyons · Rating 2 out of 5]

So it’s a pretty good book, exciting plot development, but as a PJ Library book it feels like some editor just ret-conned the Jewish content into the book to sell it as a Jewish book. And all they did was call the protagonist Jewish and throw in a few Yiddish phrases. They didn’t even take opportunities that this provided to share the Jewish take on the ethical dilemmas or grief that were a part of the narrative. Or the Jewish emotional experience if changing one’s name. So that made it overall disappointing.

[Jilda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like it this book I had trouble finding books that I wanted to read and really were and finish and this book was awesome

Daughter of jil

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the book overall, however I did think that nat, the main character, was a bit of a jerk.

[Tabitha Munyaka · Rating 5 out of 5]

i finished this book and i loved it even though i don't like football. i would recommend it to everyone who likes football and it doesn't matter is you are boy/girl cause this book is exproding

[Simon Bonato · Rating 4 out of 5]

Where Can i find an e-book to this book? Plz help