Team Player

After his parents' marriage and finances collapse, high school junior Kyle Donovan must move in with his no-nonsense grandfather in the city and discover whether football can help him overcome ethnic and socioeconomic obstacles. Kyle Donovan, a seventeen year old star football running back from the privileged suburb of Fairview, Massachusetts, is devastated when his seemingly idyllic world falls apart. The collapse of his father's computer company and the divorce of his parents force Kyle to live with his blue collar curmudgeon of a grandfather in the gritty and ethnically diverse Boston suburb of Crandall. Can his love for football, the loyalty of a new group of multicultural friends, and most importantly, the special bond between grandfather and grandson, help Kyle rise above his circumstances and understand that the ultimate value of a person is not measured by wealth and social status? As a high school teacher and coach for 46 yera, I believe every athilete should read this book. Travers teaches ethics and honor through his main character, Kyle, leaving a lasting impression on today's youth. --Conny Moran, Reviewer. Team Player is a grand prize winner of the "Books Without Publishers" writing contest. Author Jack Travers, a social studies teacher and longtime football coach at Boston College High School, lives in Lynn, Massachusetts along with his wife Janice and their two children, Gina and Joseph. Jack holds a Bachelor of Arts and Master in Arts and Teaching from Boston College and a J.D. from the New England School of Law. As a native of Greater Boston and a twenty eight veteran of the classroom, Jack is thoroughly familiar with the themes that permeate his young adult novel, Team Player.