This funny and poignant novel celebrates the power of writing to help
young people make sense of their lives and unlock and confront their
problems. -- School Library Journal (starred review)
When MVP Kevin Boland gets the news that he has mono and won't be seeing
a baseball field for a while, he suddenly finds himself scrawling a poem
down the middle of a page in his journal. To get some help, he cops a
poetry book from his dad's den -- and before Kevin knows it, he's
writing in verse about stuff like, Will his jock friends give up on him?
What's the deal with girlfriends? Surprisingly enough, after his health
improves, he keeps on writing, about the smart-talking Latina girl who
thinks poets are cool, and even about his mother, whose death is a
still-tender loss. Written in free verse with examples of several poetic
forms slipped into the mix, including a sonnet, haiku, pastoral, and
even a pantoum, this funny, poignant story by a master of dialogue is an
English teacher's dream -- sure to hook poetry lovers, baseball
fanatics, mono recoverers, and everyone in between.