Game Changer by Tommy Greenwald

The Hook: 

13-year-old Teddy is seriously injured during football practice at summer camp.  In fact, he’s in a coma fighting for his life!  How could this have happened?  Sure, there are injuries in football—but a kid winding up in a coma??  What happened?  No one is talking.  The coaches didn’t see because they were not there. Instead, they had told the high school seniors to run the drills. Will, the captain of the football team, has instructed the rest of the team to stick together, be a team, and no matter what, DO NOT talk about what happened with anyone!  Is this the result of playing a dangerous sport like football….or did something more sinister happen? 

This novel is a sports book, but it is also a mystery. Told in alternating perspectives and varying formats, we learn clues by reading text messages, newspaper articles, dialogue between friends, and even interviews so in the end, we finally piece together what truly happened.  

It is in our library. It is also in Sora as an audio book and Axis 360 as both an audio book and an eBook. It is 4 AR points. 

My Thoughts and Recommendations (Careful! There Could Be Spoilers): 

I love this book! Definitely one of my favorite sports novels and I am looking forward to the rest of Greenwald’s complimentary books in this series. I like that it is a mystery, and the reader picks up clues by hearing from people through varying formats (text message, email, etc.). Because of this, the mystery is more engaging for the reader as they put together the clues throughout the story.  It is a fun read!

It does talk about the danger of football but what is more depicted is the culture behind the game. The players feel the pressure of the entire community to be the best because of championships from football teams in the past. Their parents, their grandparents all expect dedication, loyalty, and even silence. So, it is difficult for students to do the right thing and come forward with what really happened during the practice. That very pressure makes players not behave in characteristic ways—even good, well-behaved kids who what to please make mistakes with this kind of culture surrounding. The hard part is standing up and admitting it to people who might not want to hear the truth. 

Great story! I recommend this for kids in 5th-8th grades. 4.9 stars!