Have Board, Will Travel: The Definitive History Of Surf, Skate, And Snow, Jamie Brisick, None; Harper Paperbacks

“Describes the ins and outs of surfing, skateboarding, and snowboarding, covering the histories of each sport, the best places to ride, leading personalities, performance details, and insider tips.”
Robin’s Note: This sports nonfiction title is a great pick for anyone keen on sports fiction and curious about the real-life talent and skill it takes to succeed.  The major connection here is sports that require boards – surfing, skateboarding, and snowboarding.  Also check out Skate and Destroy (skateboarding) and Streetball (basketball) for more engaging nonfiction titles on sports.  If you prefer memoirs, you might enjoy Senior Year: A Father, A Son, and High School Baseball by Dan Shaugnessy.

Samurai Shortstop, Alan Gratz; Dial Books

“While obtaining a Western education at a prestigious Japanese boarding school in 1890, sixteen-year-old Toyo also receives traditional samurai training which has profound effects on both his baseball game and his relationship with his father.”
Robin’s Note: This title is a bit different from most sports titles, in that it’s historical, but I thought it might appeal, especially since we now have a star Japanese baseball player here in Boston.  The history of baseball in Japan is interesting, and they are likely the only other country that loves the sport as much as Americans do.  Baseball was adopted in Japan early on in the game’s history, and the conflict between the new culture it represented and the traditions of Japan, represented here by samurai culture, was fierce and often personal.

Deal Breaker (Myron Bolitar Mysteries), Harlan Coben; Delacorte Press

“Sports agent Myron Bolitar is poised on the edge of the big time. So is Christian Steele, a rookie quarterback and Myron’s prized client. But when Christian gets a phone call from a former girlfriend, a woman who everyone, including the police, believes is dead, the deal starts to go sour. Trying to unravel the truth about a family’s tragedy, a woman’s secret, and a man’s lies, Myron is up against the dark side of his business—where image and talent make you rich, but the truth can get you killed.”
Robin’s Note: Harlan Coben is a popular mystery writer, and his plots are suspenseful and engaging alongside world-building details about the culture each series is set within.  This series can make a good match for teens interested in sports as well as mysteries who are looking outside the teen fiction offerings.  As with any mystery series, there are more after this first title – and if you just like his mysteries, he’s written a number of different series aside from this group.

Crackback, John Coy; Scholastic Press

“Miles barely recalls when football was fun after being sidelined by a new coach, constantly criticized by his father, and pressured by his best friend to take performance-enhancing drugs.”
Robin’s Note: This title takes on a harsher aspect of sports by addressing steroids – their appeal and the dangers of using them.  John Coy has written a number of books featuring sports for teens, so if you like this one, there’s more to read.

Knights Of The Hill Country, Tim Tharp; Alfred A. Knopf

“In his senior year, high school star linebacker Hampton Greene finally begins to think for himself and discovers that he might be interested in more than just football.”
Robin’s Note: This is a strong sports title, this time focusing on football.  Tim Tharp is a writer who has a strong sense of language, banter, and what it is to be a part of a team even in how much it can trap you despite love of the sport. 

Fighting Ruben Wolfe, Markus Zusak; Arthur A. Levine Books

“Partly because of their family’s poor finances and partly to prove themselves, brothers Ruben and Cameron take jobs as fighters and find themselves reacting very differently in the boxing ring.”
Robin’s Note: Markus Zusak got a lot of attention recently for his later book, The Book Thief, but this title was his first and is very different though equally good.  It covers everything from boxing to peer pressure to being brothers, and Zusak has a great ear for how conversations actually sound.  The energy of the book is infectious, even as the consequences of getting into illegal boxing start piling up.

The Absolutely True Diary Of A Part-Time Indian, Sherman Alexie; Little, Brown Young Readers

“Budding cartoonist Junior leaves his troubled school on the Spokane Indian Reservation to attend an all-white farm town school where the only other Indian is the school mascot.”
Robin’s Note: Sherman Alexie is an extraordinary storyteller—he goes from being hilariously funny to heartbreaking in only a few paragraphs.  This is his first novel aimed at teens, and its incredibly charming.  Junior, the lead, has a strong, sarcastic voice, which leads to many a laugh out loud scene, but the circumstances of his life show you why he needs it: alcoholism is rampant on the reservation where he lives, and the pressure of being perceived as betraying his friends and community at the same time as trying to fit in to an new school is crushing at times.  If you like his style, you should also check out his short story collection The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven and novels for adults.