Basketball has always been an escape for Finley. He lives in broken-down Bellmont, a dismal Pennsylvania town ruled by the Irish mob, drugs, violence, and racially charged rivalries. At home, his dad works nights and Finley is left alone to take care of his disabled grandfather. He’s always dreamed of somehow getting out, but until he can, putting on that number 21 jersey makes everything seem okay. When his coach asks him to mentor Russ, a troubled African American student, who has transferred there from an elite private school in California, he finds that they have a lot in common in spite of their apparent differences.
Russ has just moved to the neighbourhood. The life of this teen basketball phenom has been turned upside down by tragedy. Cut off from everyone he knows, he won’t pick up a basketball, and yet answers only to the name Boy21 - taken from his former jersey number.
As their final year of high school brings these two boys together, “Boy21″ may turn out to be the answer they both need. Matthew Quick, the acclaimed author of Sorta Like a Rock Star, brings readers a moving novel about hope, recovery, and redemption.
| GMD | BOOK |
| Classification | F QUI |
| Publisher | Little Brown & Company, 2013-06-18 |
| Subject | Juvenile FictionJUVENILE FICTIONJuvenile Fiction / Action & Adventure / GeneralBasketballJuvenile Fiction / Sports & Recreation / GeneralTeam SportHigh SchoolJuvenile Fiction / Social Issues / FriendshipFriendsNew FriendshipsJuvenile Fiction / Social Themes / FriendshipAmericaAfrican Americans |
| Description | ★ "Quick is a master of capturing the rawness of adolescence and the bleakness that comes from being trapped in the wrong world, whether it’s Finley’s bad neighborhood or, in the case of Boy21, Earth.” - The Boston Globe ★ "…beautiful…a first-rate work of art.” - The New York Times "Quick is brilliant at writing in the voice of troubled teenagers, especially those who are different…This is an excellent addition to his many commendable novels.” - The Guardian ★ "…satisfying but never simple… A story that, like [its narrator] Finley, expresses a lot in relatively few words.” - Kirkus “Boy21 and All the Right Stuff [by Walter Dean Myers] offer the fresh voices of boys grappling with growing up in less than stellar settings. In both novels basketball is a device, not a destination. And both books are standouts.” Chicago Sun-Times ★ "…[Quick’s] emotionally raw tale retains a delicate sense of hope and optimism, making it a real gut punch of a read.” - Publishers Weekly ★ "While basketball anchors the storyline, the interaction between Finley and Russ and their tragedies show that friendship can be more of a constant than sports. Both boys and girls will be attracted to the book.” - Library Media Connection |
| ISBN | 9780316127967 |
| Additional ISBN | 0316127965 |
| URL |