About This Book
Reach for this book when a middle-school child is struggling with 'waiting for the other shoe to drop.' It is particularly resonant for children who have experienced instability in their home lives and are finding it difficult to trust that a good situation will last. The story follows David, a thirteen-year-old in foster care who is finally feeling safe, only to be haunted by the fear that his guardian's changing moods or his own performance on the baseball field might destroy his fragile sense of belonging. Dean Hughes expertly weaves together the high-stakes pressure of Pony League baseball with the internal, quiet anxiety of a child guarding his heart. This realistic contemporary novel is ideal for ages 10 to 14, offering a mirror for those in foster or adoptive families and a window for others to understand the complexities of emotional security. It provides a natural opening to discuss how we handle stress and the importance of communicating fears instead of carrying them alone.
