The novel begins with an introduction to the main character, Nate Brodie, and his passion for playing football. Although there is much going on in his life, football is a necessary escape as well as a means for the teen to find stability:

This was always the best of it for Nate Brodie, when he felt the slap of the ball in his hands and began to back away from the center, when he felt as if he could see the whole field, and football made perfect sense to him. Sometimes when you were thirteen nothing seemed to make sense, and the world came at you faster and trickier than flying objects in a video game. It was never like that for him in football (1).

Nate thinks about how he can’t understand the difficult things happening in his life lately, namely his best friend Abby’s failing eyesight, but at least he has football. It’s Saturday, and he’s in the middle of throwing his best game of the season as Valley’s star quarterback. His dad couldn’t be at the game because he’s now working two jobs, but his

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