Deuker, Carl. Gutless.

Deuker, Carl.  Gutless.   Houghton Mifflin         2016    329p    $17.99  ISBN 978-0-544-64961-3  hs  Sports  E-BN         

Brock Ripley is a football player who is afraid of getting hurt on the field. He is the fastest runner and has the best catching hands of anyone on the team. The quarterback, Hunter Gates, loves to pass to him because it makes him look great. Richie Fang is his best friend. Although Richie is bright student, he constantly gets tripped and bullied by Hunter’s football gang. It is not until the team discovers that Richie is a fantastic soccer kicker that the bullying stops. Gutless is a fast-paced read that will keep readers’ interest until the end.

The various aspects of the novel deal with sports, friendships, prejudices, the multicultural aspects of schools, bullying and learning to accept responsibilities. It would make an excellent selection for a basic books list for secondary school libraries.
                       

Summary: This is a story of a varsity football player (Brock Ripley) who must face his weaknesses and stand strong while doing the right thing. Readers will encounter bullying, prejudice, and multicultural friendships in this story.        

Football-Fiction, Bullying-Fiction                                                                              --Linda McNeil