Like lightning/you strike/fast and free/legs zoom/down field/eyes fixed/on the checkered ball/on the goal/ten yards to go/can't nobody stop you/can't nobody cop you... Twelve-year-old Nick is a football-mad boy who absolutely hates books. In this follow-up to the Newbery-winning novel The Crossover, football, family, love, and friendship take centre stage as Nick tries to figure out how to navigate his parents' break-up, stand up to bullies, and impress the girl of his dreams. These challenges - which seem even harder than scoring a tie-breaking, game-winning goal - change his life, as well as his best friend's. This energetic novel-in-verse by the poet Kwame Alexander captures all the thrills and setbacks, the action and emotion of a World Cup match.

 

This book was recognised by the Carnegie Award. The CILIP Carnegie Medal is awarded by childrens librarians for an outstanding book written in English for children and young people.

. This book is part of a HiLo reading scheme, combining high interest relative to the required reading skill.

There are 320 pages in this book. This book was published 2016 by Andersen Press Ltd .

Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator, and the New York Times bestselling author of 28+ books, including The Undefeated, Booked and Rebound, the follow-up to his Newbery medal-winning middle grade novel, The Crossover. He's also the Founding Editor of Versify, an imprint that publishes fiction and poetry for children and young adults.