School Library Journal Review
Gr 5-8-It's the summer after middle school and Cassie Bennett is gearing up for the all-star softball season. Cassie is a strong all-around athlete, having made waves as a standout on the boys' basketball team. Now she's looking forward to leading her Walton Red Sox through another undefeated season and competing for a chance to play for a regional championship in Fenway Park. The biggest challenge comes from the rupture of her friend group with the arrival of a new player, Sarah Milligan, who has Asperger's Syndrome. While several of the girls reject Sarah because her disability makes them uncomfortable, Cassie takes her on as someone to "fix." Alongside the softball story is a complementary one about Cassie's friends, Jack, Teddy, and Gus, and the plight of their baseball team after the removal of their overbearing coach and the related tension with his high-strung son, Sam. Through an eventful summer both on and off the field, Cassie and the others learn much about themselves and what kind of commitment it takes to maintain both a friendship and a team, while Cassie gets an insightful lesson from Sarah's mom about the difference between sympathy and empathy. Lupica describes game play with appropriate detail that should please fans but avoids letting the social plot get lost in the weeds. Periodic explorations into the psychology of pitching will be intriguing even to readers not interested in the game. VERDICT A compelling read with important lessons, Lupica's latest is highly recommended for libraries serving middle graders.-Bob Hassett, Luther Jackson Middle School, Falls Church, VA © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
Cassie's middle-school softball team has a shot at the championship, but its dynamic is destroyed by the inclusion of a new player with Asperger's syndrome. In befriending Sarah, Cassie jeopardizes her own leadership. Lupica's preachiness interferes with his vivid sports writing in this fourth message-driven Home Team novel. (c) Copyright 2019. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Cassie Bennett has just finished eighth grade and is starting her final middle school all-star softball season. What she doesn't realize is that it will be the most difficult yet best one yet.This year there's a new girl on their team who stands out, and it's not just because she is an amazing player. Cassie's dad, the team's coach, tells her that Sarah Milligan is on the autism spectrum. When Cassie tries to push her teammates to accept Sarah immediately, the team fractures, leaving Cassie and Sarah on the outside. In the end Cassie finally learns what she needs to learn: She can't fix people, either Sarah or her teammates. There is also a subplot of short-lived drama on the boys' baseball team due to a new coach, which becomes comic relief for both Cassie and readers. In the fourth installment in his Home Team series (Point Guard, 2017, etc.), Lupica consciously focuses on neurodiversity. Readers learn the difference between sympathy and empathy as well as the truth that no matter how many common traits they say people with autism share, everybody's different, and Sarah is most like herself. Among the resources Cassie consults is the website Autism Speaks; that there seems to be little awareness that it's not universally trusted by autism activists may raise eyebrows. On the sports side, the play-by-play makes little accommodation for readers who don't know the game, but those who are reading for the theme rather than the softball action should find that they can follow well enough.A base hit for readers interested in sports as well as neurodiversity. (Fiction. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
