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Summary
Summary
Stevie Thomas and Susan Carol Anderson return in another fast-paced, action-packed sports mystery from bestselling sports writer John Feinstein. The two hopeful sports reporters have kept in touch after their wild time at the Final Four, and when Susan Carol manages to score a press pass to cover the first week of the US Open Tennis Tournament in New York, Stevie works out a way to be there as well. The behind-the-scenes action in the world of professional tennis is overwhelming and occasionally bewildering, but it turns downright inconceivable when a young Russian phenom, Natalia Makarova, disappears right before her second-round match. Somewhere between the locker rooms and the Louis Armstrong Court, one of the most-watched players of the tournament simply vanishes. The media coverage is staggering. Everyone is looking for Natalia--including Stevie and Susan Carol. Was she kidnapped? Did she run? Is she even still alive? The rumors are growing wilder by the hour. But they don't even come close to the shocking truth...
Author Notes
John Feinstein was born in New York City on July 28, 1956. He graduated from Duke University. He is a sportswriter, author, and sports commentator. He was on the staff at the Washington Post and wrote for Sports Illustrated. He is the author of several books including A Season on the Brink, Where Nobody Knows Your Name, A Good Walk Spoiled, and The Legends Club: Dean Smith, Mike Krzyzewski, Jim Valvano, and the Story of an Epic College Basketball Rivalry.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
The teen reporters who uncovered scandal at college basketball's Final Four in Last Shot wangle new assignments to cover the U.S. Open tennis championships. Stevie Thomas and Susan Carol Anderson find themselves pulled into investigating the disappearance of Nadia Symanova, a Russian with a powerful forehand and supermodel looks. Despite the onslaught of media that converges on Queens, it takes the two 13-year-olds to untangle the mystery, and uncover the corruption fueling it. Sportswriter and adult novelist Feinstein (A Season on the Brink) delivers a name-dropping, insider account of professional tennis politics-TV announcer Bud Collins is a character-and does not pull his punches. "Agents are responsible for most of the ills of tennis, and the ills of tennis are endless," his Collins says-and those ills apparently include tennis prodigies who forfeit their education to pursue million-dollar shoe contracts, and players who shriek when striking the ball. Sports agents come under the harshest scrutiny. There may be a lot of commentary here, but the tension continually escalates, and ends with a hint of romance between the protagonists that suggests at least one more adventure for Susan Carol and Stevie. Ages 10-up. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Booklist Review
In Feinstein's Last Shot (2005), 13-year-old reporters Susan Carol Anderson and Stevie Thomas uncover a scandal at basketball's Final Four event. In this follow-up, set at the U.S. Open, the teens once again unravel a scandal, all the while learning the ropes of sports reporting. Accompanied by adult mentors, many of whom first appeared in Last Shot, the friends arrive at the Open and prepare to file stories for their newspapers. Then a young Russian tennis star is kidnapped, and as the teens track down clues, they discover that Susan's beloved uncle may be involved. Although too many logistical details slow the pace, sports fans will be fascinated by the insider's view of the tournament, and even teens ambivalent about sports will connect with the memorable, high-achieving kids and the messages about maintaining integrity versus selling out--in sports and in life. --Gillian Engberg Copyright 2006 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-6-Celtic music and traditional storytelling are combined in this collection of wolf tales performed by Tim Jennings and Leanne Ponder for an audience of Vermont school children and their families. In "Hungry Wolf's Lucky Day," a wolf hunts for his breakfast, but is repeatedly outwitted by a variety of animals. "St. Ailbe's Wolf Mother," the strongest of the three tales, is told with interludes of Celtic music. A human baby is raised by a wolf and years later has the opportunity to save his wolf mother from hunters. In "The Dog and the Wolf," a farmer believes his dog has become too elderly to be useful and sends him off into the forest. A wolf assists him and, in appreciation, the dog protects the wolf and provides him with food. One day, while the farmer is hosting a party, the dog sneaks the wolf in. The wolf becomes drunk and begins to sing. The dog saves the wolf from certain death at the hands of the farmer and they remain close friends. The use of alcohol in this tale may make it inappropriate for young children. The stories are told in two overlapping voices which is meant to lend emphasis to various portions of the story; however, the dueling voices become distracting and irritating. Variations in the volume further affect the CD's aural quality. The lively Celtic music is the strength of this endeavor.-Lisa Hubler, Cuyahoga County Public Library, OH (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Stevie Thomas and Susan Carol Anderson are back. Having foiled a plot at the NCAA Final Four tournament in Last Shot (2005), they are in New York City for the U.S. Open tennis tournament, and once again there's trouble. Rising superstar Nadia Symanova disappears, setting off a media frenzy and embroiling the young reporters in a conspiracy involving two kidnappings, a mugging, the FBI, ruined reputations and a bit of romance. The story puts readers behind the scenes, rubbing shoulders with celebrity tennis greats and popular television journalists. Veteran sportswriter Feinstein serves a winner here, deftly blending sports, mystery and social commentary. The prose is taut, the dialogue snappy, and layers of intrigue are laid down like expert drop shots. The mystery will hold readers to the very end, culminating in an exciting match and surprise arrests. A natural pairing with Mike Lupica's Travel Team (2004) and Heat (April 2006). (Fiction. 10+) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Excerpts
Excerpts
"Okay," Kelleher said, pausing just outside the press room entrance. "We need a strategy of some kind. I think we should split up . . ." He broke off in mid-sentence as a middle-aged man with graying hair ducked out of the media center and made a quick turn away from them. "Arlen!" Kelleher said, heading toward the man. "Arlen, hang on a second!" The man half turned, still walking and waved a hand as if to say, go away. "Not now Bobby. I can't talk. We're organizing a press conference. We'll let you know what's going on in a while." He had slowed down enough that Kelleher was able to catch up to him. Stevie and Susan Carol followed at what they hoped was a discreet distance. "In a while?" Kelleher said. "Come on, Arlen give me a break. Don't give me that press conference crap. What happened out there. Where the hell is Symanova?" The man stopped and turned to face Kelleher. Stevie noticed he was quite pale. He looked around as if to be sure no one could hear him and dropped his voice to a whisper so that Stevie, standing right behind Kelleher could barely hear. "We don't know," he said. For a second, Kelleher just stared at him. "What do you mean you don't know? How can you not know? Wasn't she on her way over to Armstrong with Walsh?" " Yes she was !" Arlen said, clearly exasperated, still looking around as if he was afraid someone would hear him. "They were on their way over there and she disappeared." "Disappeared!" Kelleher shouted. "Bobby please," Arlen hissed, signaling Kelleher to keep his voice down. "Yes, she disappeared. You know what it's like out there between the stadiums. We had four security guys surrounding the two players. A group of people cut across their path headed for the food court. The security guys got jostled. Walsh and her two guys kept going, no one bumped them. By the time Symanovs guys got untangled she was gone." "But how is that possible. . ." Arlen held up his hand. "For crying out loud Bobby, if we knew, she wouldn't be missing would she? We've sealed all the exits to the park but that's the problem-we're right on the edge of a park. There are plenty of ways to get off the property without walking through an exit." He looked around again. "I've got to go. There's a meeting in about two minutes. I've told you everything I know up to this minute." "Okay, okay," Kelleher said. "Can I quote you on this stuff?" Arlen smiled wanly. "At this point, that's the least of my worries." He turned and walked down the hallway. "Who was that?" Stevie asked. "Arlen Kanterian," Kelleher said. "He's the CEO of professional tennis for the U.S. Tennis Association. It means he's in charge of the tournament. He talks to me because his brother Harry's a friend of mine." He took a deep breath. "Okay, this story is officially huge. Beyond huge. We've got a big leg up on people right now, let's do something with it." "Like what?" Susan Carol said, for once looking as baffled as Stevie felt. Kelleher took a deep breath. "Good question," he said. Then he snapped his fingers. "Listen Susan Carol, you can get into the junior girls locker room." "What's that?" she asked. "I'll give you the short version," Kelleher said. "There are so many girls under eighteen in the event that they have a separate locker room that the media isn't allowed into because the parents freak out about men seeing their daughters half-dressed. Since female reporters are allowed in the men's locker room, male reporters are allowed into the women's. But not where there are women under the age of eighteen. It's been a huge controversy for years because all the players freak out about us being in the locker room. The point is the junior locker room door's not even marked and they usually don't even have a guard on it because they don't want to call attention to it. You take your press credential off, you can probably walk in there like you're a player." "How do you know where it is?" Susan Carol said. "Carillo showed me. Come on, let's start walking. I'll show you where it is. Meantime, Stevie, I want you in the players lounge. Once you're past the guard, take your credential off and just walk around and listen. I'm going to the men's locker room. We'll meet back here in thirty minutes." "What exactly are we listening for?" Stevie asked as they started to walk down the long hallway. Kelleher shook his head. "I have no idea Stevie," he said. "But people will be talking and someone must know something ." "And what do I do if I manage to get in?" Susan Carol said. "Won't the other players know I'm a fraud right away? "Sit in front of an empty locker as if it's yours and listen. There are so many different events going on here at once that no one knows everybody. You never know when you're going to be in the right place at the right time. If we're in three different places, our chances are three times as good of hearing something helpful." "But what do we think is going on here?" Stevie asked. "That," Kelleher said, "is the multi-million dollar question." Excerpted from Vanishing Act: Mystery at the U. S. Open by John Feinstein All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
