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Book Review - The Year Mom Won the Pennant
Pages:
147
Approximate Reading Time: 39 minutes
I
remember this book fondly as one of my favorites when I was a stupid and
impressionable 11-year-old. However, I'm not 11 anymore, and this book
did not strike me as anything near "good" or "cool."
It did have some redeeming qualities though, so let's get to it!
Plot:
Matt
Christopher books are never lauded for their social impact on society,
and their plots rarely challenge anyone over the age of 12. That being
said, this book had some pretty deep stuff for the time, as some loser
kid named Nick Vassey is stuck without a Little League team along with
a bunch of other losers. Nick's dad used to coach, but can't do it anymore,
due to longer hours at work (wink wink, nudge nudge). For some reason,
none of the other guys on the team have fathers who work normal hours
either, so it looks like the "Thunderballs" won't be able to
field a team this year. Luckily though, after Nick spends all dinner whining
about his dilemma, Mrs. Vassey volunteers her services as coach. Nick,
the ever-appreciative son of the 60's, gets the story going with this
witty retort:
"Well,
I guess having a team is better than not having one, even if we don't
win a single game."
Why
Nick's dad didn't just beat Nick down for trashing his mom while she changed
her mind about coaching his rag-tag team is beyond me, but this is 1968,
so let's roll with the punches.
Anyway,
as a female, Nick's mom has to win over Nick's friends/teammates while
fans jeer her and opposing coaches mock her. Surprisingly though, this
was Nick's mom's year to win the pennant, so she has the last laugh in
the end while Nick grows respect for womankind.
Characters:
A
lot to work with here, as this was one of the reasons I loved the book
long ago. Aside from Nick, who you're just begging to see lose, no one
really jumped out as being outright offensive. Even the mom wins you over
in a weird way, mainly because she's proving her jerk son wrong. The rest
of Nick's family is utterly forgettable however, even Nick's two cute
younger sisters.
Nick's
teammates were okay, as well as being politically correct. Nick has an
African-American on his team, although in the book he's referred to as
a "Negro." There's also a Chinese-American kid on the team,
but like all other Chinese-American kids, he suffers from the stereotype
of having a Chinese-American restaurant owner for a father. There's also
Wayne Snow, who seems to be the most disturbed by there being a woman
coach, but by the end is her biggest supporter (awwww).
The
stars of the show however are the antagonists of the story, Mr. Stevens,
the coach of the Tornadoes, and Bugs Wheeler, the star catcher of the
Tornadoes. Mr. Stevens is delightfully sexist throughout and I wouldn't
be surprised to see that he was the inspiration for Roy Turner on "The
Bad News Bears" (the coach of the Yankees). Bugs is the loud, obnoxious
guy you're always against in sports. Kind of like Turner's son in "The
Bad News Bears." I do think Mr. Christopher could have given Bugs
some better comebacks for Nick's lame trash-talking, but other than that,
Bugs totally OWNED Nick and Nick liked it. I grew up assuming that Mr.
Stevens really was Bugs' dad, only he was his step-dad. You know, cause
all step-dads are sexist, overly competitive assholes. Bugs was the kind
of guy who started drinking when he was 13. As if you need more reason
to root for him.
One
thing I especially loved about Christopher books was the names of characters.
Just ridiculous names that make me roll my eyes today, but entralled me
10 years ago. Bugs, for one. There was also "Cyclone," the Thunderballs'
lead-off hitter. Who the hell names their kid Cyclone? Don't forget the
Clowns' star pitcher, Stinky Morrison. Stinky? I'm sure these are supposed
to be nicknames, but they're stupid nicknames. Maybe they were cool 35
years ago.
Problems:
This
book had quite a few, and I'll be happy to point them out.
--The
climax of the book is not the Thunderballs/Tornadoes matchup (although
we are treated to THREE of those...sigh), but the actually anti-climactic
Thunderballs/Clowns showdown. The point was, if the Thunderballs lost
to the Clowns, they'd be tied with the Tornadoes and would have a one-game
playoff to determine the league champions. Nice idea, but there were two
major flaws here.
#1: The game with the Clowns begins on page 140. Note that this is a 147-page
book. Anyone who thought the playoff game was coming is retarded.
#2: The damn title of the book gives the entire story away! I mean, Mr.
Christopher tries to make it exciting and all, what with Dale (the negro
kid) getting a grand slam in the bottom of the last inning (yeah right)
for the 9-8 victory. BUT I KNEW THEY WERE WINNING CAUSE I READ THE TITLE
OF THE BOOK BEFOREHAND.
--The
Tornadoes were built up as this powerhouse team. Apparently they had won
the championship the previous two seasons and were gunning for a three-peat.
Throughout the story, it appears to be a two-team race for the title (Tornadoes/Thunderballs,
morons). On page 121, Mr. Christopher finally reveals the standings for
those two teams:
"The
Tornadoes had beaten the Zebras on Wednesday, leaving them with a record
of six wins and five losses."
SIX
and FIVE? What kind of powerhouse team is that? The way the story was
going, you thought the Thunderballs and Tornadoes would both be 10-1 while
all the other teams were like 2-9. But no, the powerhouse Tornadoes were
battling for .500. Unbelievable.
--The
actual relationships between the characters is a joke. Mr. Christopher
makes it appear that Nick is only friends with his teammates and that
he never sees his opponents outside of games. Nevermind that these kids
HAD to be going to school. It's not like they're 25 and in the Major Leagues...they're
probably 12 at the OLDEST and in the 6th grade. I think we're supposed
to assume the Clowns are from a different county or something, and that
the Tornadoes are from out-of-state. Forget that, I bet Nick was in the
same damn class as Bugs. Only there they were expected to learn...they
saved their trash-talking for the field! This is a trend you find in most
Christopher books. Characters only seem to have relationships with guys
on their Little League teams. Anyone not on their team is simply known
as "that guy on the Tornadoes" or whatever. When *I* played
Little League, I was never friends with my teammates.
--It's
implied that all these pathetic Little League teams have these legions
of fans, when that's just impossible to believe. I had maybe six parents
at my games, and none of them ever acted like a typical fan at a pro game
(with interest). Of course, that was 1992 and this is 1968. Night and
day, I suppose.
Summation:
Nick
Vassey is quite possibly one of the most annoying characters Matt Christopher
has ever come up with. That's a bad thing. However, Nick is proven wrong
quite a bit. Matt also throws in Mr. Stevens and Bugs Wheeler, possibly
two of his best characters. Those are good things. If you're down with
women's rights and all that, you may be down with this book. Everyone
else should get it for the fun of picturing Coach Stevens sitting on his
dugout bench with his smug smile, knowing full well that there's no way
a WOMAN can beat him. And to picture Bugs Wheeler beating the crap out
of Nick Vassey moments after the book ends.
Score:
8 out of 10
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