Dean Duffy [Hardcover]

Randy Powell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1995

Dean Duffy, a Seattle high schooler who has always been brilliant at baseball, desperately struggles to put his life and his potential career back on track after his pitching goes bad and his batting slumps.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Powell (Is Kissing a Girl Who Smokes Like Licking an Ashtray?) wraps up this nifty coming-of-age tale in a baseball story-yet not a single game is played. Although he's only just graduated from high school, Dean Duffy thinks of himself as a has-been. An agonizing and inexplicable slump has cut short his promising career as a ballplayer; once considered a shoo-in for any number of athletic scholarships, he is at loose ends until a longtime mentor arranges a baseball scholarship to an exclusive private college, to begin the following spring. Dean spends the autumn mulling over the offer: he takes a lot of long drives in his '63 Volvo, embarks on a wryly recounted romance with the strong-minded waitress at his favorite coffeeshop and wonders if he has the nerve to play ball again. Like a string of firecrackers, a series of epiphanies explodes as the deadline for Dean's decision draws near. The ambiguous yet upbeat ending provides a fitting climax. With his effortless-seeming writing, Powell creates a recognizable world and peoples it with characters who are remarkably sympathetic and complex. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up?Dean, 18, is a baseball player whose glory days are behind him. At 15, he pitched for the world championship Little League team, and as a freshman he hit a game-winning grand slam. But after his arm gave out, he moved to first base and plunged into a two-year batting slump, losing any hope for a college scholarship. Since graduation he's been sliding sideways, wondering what his future holds. Interesting supporting characters, several of them adults, nudge Dean in various directions. Jack Trant, an affable supporter of college athletics who is estranged from his own son, finagles Dean a one-semester "trial" scholarship at a small private college. The young man realistically hesitates to commit himself to possible further humiliation playing the game he's loved. He meets a beautiful and enigmatic high-school dropout with a baby and they develop a friendly and supportive relationship, but it's Dean's encounters with several old baseball acquaintances that finally get him moving. In an exciting climax he survives a plunge down a ravine and is able to expunge some of his demons. The ending is delightfully ambiguous, as Dean is handed a pen to sign his letter of intent and readers are left to decide whether or not he will give baseball?and himself?another chance. Dean Duffy has stronger subplots and more likable characters than Powell's earlier YA novels.?Joel Shoemaker, Southeast Jr. High School, Iowa City, IA
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 169 pages
• Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux; 1st edition (April 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374317542
• ISBN-13: 978-0374317546
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,401,856 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 90% Mental, 10% Physical, May 10, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Dean Duffy (Paperback)

A Review by Corey

Dean Duffy is a young adult just out of high school. He was an awesome baseball player his freshman and sophomore years, the he went in to a huge slump his junior and senior years. He could never figure out why. But over the summer he is offered a full scholarship to a college he'd never even heard of. Almost the entire summer he is apartment sitting and doing a little work just to make enough to keep him alive. Not doing much gave him a lot of time to think about what he is going to do with the rest of his life and if he really wants to accept the scholarship.

This is an excellent book that allows the reader to connect with it very much (Especially if you are a baseball player). It is very realistic and there are many conflicts that are similar to the world as it is today. The characters definitely keep you in the story because if you are a high school student I'm sure you know what people just like them, such as stoners, arrogant people, and the kind of people who are willing to do anything for you because they believe in you so much. The pace is very nice and you don't get lost from quick changes in characters.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves to play baseball or is just in the mood for a good book because you can relate to almost all of Dean Duffy's problems.

3.0 out of 5 stars Baseball Slump, July 4, 2007

By 

A. Luciano (Lowell, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dean Duffy (Paperback)

Dean, just finished with his senior year in high school, isn't sure what to do with his life. For the past few years it all seemed so clear to him--when he was a freshman he was a baseball phenomenon, playing varsity for his high school and scaring the heck out of guys much older than he was. His sophomore year was just as spectacular, and college recruiters and major league teams were already looking at him and talking about him.

Then, in Dean's junior year, he fell into a slump. An injured arm set him back a bit and he just couldn't seem to find his rhythm. He had a miserable season, followed by another miserable season his senior year. No baseball scouts looked at him anymore. No scholarship offers came in from any colleges.

Now the summer after high school, Dean is in limbo. He has a job house-sitting so he is living on his own, away from his parents, gaining independence and deciding what he wants to do. His former coach and secondary father figure has a friend who is starting up a baseball team at a small private college, and Dean has been offered a trial scholarship--full tuition, room and board for one semester, with an extension if his baseball game comes back. Dean is torn. Should he try to start over a new life without baseball in it, or should he take the scholarship offer and risk failing again?

I liked Dean's indecision. It was realistic to me that he would be reluctant to take another chance on a baseball team after two years of disappointment. I also liked Dean's relationship with Jack and Shilo; they gave him support that he obviously needed.

I thought Dean was far too casual about things, though, especially in his relationship with Karin. He seemed to really like her, but at the same time he didn't care if she liked him back or was exclusively dating him. I also thought Jack's relationship with his son was crummy, and I thought it was crummy of Dean to take over as a surrogate son.

4.0 out of 5 stars Jeremy Peckovitch Dean Duffy, October 21, 2002

By 

Mr.Francesco Raphael Galardo of the Catskills (Catskill, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dean Duffy (Hardcover)

The book I read was called Dean Duffy. It is written by Randy Powell. I choose this book because I like Randy Powell's books. I also liked it because it was a baseball book and I like baseball alot.
The main character in the book is Dean Duffy. He is a high school legend. But his last two seasons weren't too good. So he sets out to find what he is worth. So he takes an apartment sitting job in Seattle. There he meets up with some old friends that he was teammates with back in high school. He also meets this girl named Karin in a fast food restaurant. He gets together with her and goes out on a couple of dates with her.
While he is in Seattle this coach from Shute College named Dick Dargo gives him a one semester scholarship to play baseball but if he proves him self he will get a full scholarship. So this puts even more pressure on him because he likes Karin. So he tries to put off everything in his life so he won't have so much pressure on him. So when it was time to make his decision he chooses to.......
The author used a lot of literary elements in his book. One of them was foreshadowing for example Dean said " I wonder what would happen if I did accept the scholarship maybe I will become pro or maybe it will just be a waste of my time."
I would recommend this book to about almost everyone who like baseball books because I really liked it alot. The only bad thing about the book was the ending and if you were to read it think you will think the same way I do about the book.