Heart of a Champion

This is a youth book about two boys' love for baseball. One is extremely talented on the baseball field while the other is better than average. They support each other in many ways. The author outlines their home lives along with the problems than many families may have.
One boy's father is an alcoholic while the other's had died many years earlier. They are challenged with typical problems facing teenagers, such as drugs and alcohol, academics in school, and dedication to the sport of which they love. Will they or won't they win the state championship?
This would be an interesting book for 10-15 year old boys. It's also a fun book for adults!

What else could go wrong for Seth? His father is a fanatic of a sport Seth doesn't even like, then his father dies of a heart attack, with no one by his side. Seth, being very young at the time, had no one to turn to until one day, when Seth took a walk to the playground he saw a kid around his age playing baseball with his father. They both agreed Seth could play with them, and Seth got a new best friend, Jimmy Winter. Seth and Jimmy were best friends for many years and played baseball on the same team every year.
Seth later finds out that Jimmy's father had many alcohol problems, and Jimmy's parents got a divorce, leaving only one option for Jimmy, and that was to move away. Once Jimmy Winter was gone, again Seth was in the same situation, no one to turn to, and nowhere to go. He continues playing baseball but finds out it's not the same without Jimmy Winter.
In the situation Seth, like many others, chose alcohol as his getaway, even though he knows it's wrong and he needs to stop. Seth needs the heart of a champion to keep going. Read this action packed, sports lover's dream, to find out how much one simple game can mean to someone in Heart of a Champion by Carl Deuker.

Imagine how boring life would be if you had no siblings, no father and no friends. This is how Seth's life was until he found Jimmy. Seth saw Jimmy playing baseball with his dad at the park one day and quickly got involved. He started playing with them every weekend and then eventually everyday. Before they started playing together, Seth had never really gotten into playing baseball. Their dream was for Seth to play second base and bat second and for Jimmy to play shortstop and bat third. At first Seth wasn't good enough to play on the same team as Jimmy, but then they both made the high school team. See how their friendship takes them trough wild and crazy times.
The author Carl Deuker does a great job with HEART OF A CHAMPION . This is a great book for baseball fans and many other people. It really shows how a friendship develops between two kids who both have problems. This is a fictional story that is very good. Other Carl deuker novels that are also good are RUNNER, ON THE DEVIL'S COURT, and PAINTING THE BLACK. I have read all of these book and they are all excellent. My favorite is RUNNER. I highly recommend that you read HEART OF A CHAMPION.

How is Heart of a Champion a great book? This is a fictional story about a boy, Seth, who's father died a few years ago and one day he goes to the park. He sees a boy, Jimmy Winter, playing baseball with his dad. He joins in and has a great time. Seth and Jimmy become friends. This is only the begining of a great book. I enjoyed the book even with many dramatic twist and turns. Read about Seth and Jimmy as they go through high school. The book Heart of a champion by Carl Dueker is a phenomenal book. Enjoy one of the best baseball books written. This book is suited for sports fans who don't like to read. You will never want to put the book down.

Seth Barnam's father was a golfer, and it probably would have been Seth's game, too, but his dad died when Seth was only seven. Coming to terms with his father's death was difficult for Seth, but then he met Jimmy Winter. Jimmy has lots of baseball talent, and a father that demands perfection from him. The boys become fast friends, and both sign up for Little League, even though Seth feels inadequate compared to his new friend.

Their time together is spent practicing baseball, with Jimmy's father usually there to coach them and urge them to improve. Jimmy's intensity and self-assurance on the playing field begins to rub off onto Seth, too. He improves as a student and as a baseball player, and he dreams of being as good as Jimmy.

Then Jimmy's home life begins to unravel; his father is drinking too much and then his parents divorce. Seth is at a loss when Jimmy is caught drinking and suspended from the team. Jimmy just can't seem to get his life back on track, and his choices lead to an unexpected result.

This is an exciting novel, loaded with baseball action. It will have an intense appeal to anyone interested in that sport, but the main focus is on the friendship that develops between Seth and Jimmy, and of coping with the consequences of foolish choices, and the grief of dealing with incomprehensible loss. It's easy to read with well-developed, likable characters, a gripping plot, and plenty of action. I highly recommend this book, especially for boys, but girls will also enjoy this story of a forever kind of friendship.

Notes: An ALA Best Book for Young Adults An ALA Best Book for Reluctant Readers A New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Book of the Year.

Reviewed by: Grandma Bev