You can lose yourself in repetition—quiet your
thoughts; I learned the value of this at a very young age.
Basketball has always been an escape for Finley. He lives in
broken-down Bellmont, a town ruled by the Irish mob, drugs, violence, and
racially charged rivalries. At home, his dad works nights, and Finley is left
to take care of his disabled grandfather alone. He has always dreamed of
getting out someday, but until he can, putting on that number 21 jersey makes
everything seem okay.
Russ has just moved to the neighborhood, and 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, but answers only to the name
Boy21—taken from his former jersey number.
As their final year of high school brings these two boys
together, a unique friendship may turn out to be the answer they both need.
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Every aspect of this multilayered novel harmonizes...excellently set-up twists display Quick's mastery of pacing; authentic dialogue and deft character development ensure both our emotional investment in these richly complex boys and also our empathizing with their main commonality--feeling like "you're not the person on the outside that you are on the inside."
—
The Horn Book