Book Description
Chris Serbo, a senior, is an outside linebacker for the Valley View High School Dragons. He is also an alcoholic. His first-person story is revealed in two ways. Before each chapter, a brief italicized account tells what's going on in the present as Chris grapples with the Twelve Steps and, after football season is over, tries to finish high school at a rehabilitation facility that he's been forced to enter. In the main body of the novel, the troubled teen recounts his championship season with the Dragons, along with the downward spiral his personal life took due to his drinking. While the signs of dependency are all around him, Chris remains firmly in a state of denial. Only toward the very end of the book does he show that he might be ready to face up to his problems.

About the Author
In addition to being an English teacher and an editor at a publishing house, Jan Cheripko is the author of several children's books. Born in 1951, Cheripko worked in the newspaper business before he wrote his first book. In addition to his work in writing and publishing, Cheripko also teaches English at The Family School, a private school in upstate New York that specializes in helping at-risk teenagers.