Customer Reviews

Heart of a Champion (Avon Camelot Books)

5 star:		(49)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

HEART OF A CHAMPION tells a story about two very different boys, and what brings them together. Seth's father recently died, and he's feeling lost. He meets Jimmy Winter and so the story begins. Seth and Jimmy learn about life while they learn about baseball. They celebrate their victories and their failures on the field and in life. This book deals with important issues such as death, divorce, alcoholism and peer pressure. Deuker's dialogue is realistic, and you can hear the crack of the bat in his baseball descriptions. The plot moves along quickly, and keeps interest levels high. This is a good book even for someone who really doesn't read much for pleasure. I highly recommend it.

There are millions of books out in the world. But not all of them people like. I don't like sad books or girly books. I like sports books like baseball, basketball, and football. I also like action books. But one baseball book I really liked was Heart of a Champion. This book was written by Thomas J. Dygard. The book is about two kids in high school who have been friends since elementary school, and have a friendship that was meant to last forever. Jimmy is well on his way to being a Major League Baseball star. He made his school varsity team easily. Seth on the other hand, is struggling just to make the team. Both of them go threw some good and bad times. Like dealing with drugs, meeting new people, dealing with family members. But both of them finally figure out the consequences for doing bad and stupid things.
This book is a sad but a very exciting pulse-pounding book. But, it is also a book that sends a great message to high-school kids who love to play sports like Jimmy and Seth not to do drugs, or to drink and drive. This book is one of the best I have ever read. I like this book because I love baseball books. It has a great life lesson to teach all kids the good and bad things in life. This book had a big impact on me. Maybe it can have one on you too.

A Review by Tyler
Heart of a Champion is a good book, actually it's great book. Probably the best book I've ever read, I give it 5stars. This book was so real to life, and the struggles, heartaches, and pains a real friendship goes through. Seth and Jimmy both love the game of baseball, and everything about it, they both dream of playing in the Major Leagues. But Jimmy likes one thing inpaticular that some Major Leagues do, that will eventually break him. To find out what read the book. The ending to this story is what no one would expect, and that is how the whole book is, this is part of the reason the book is so good. The book was well written; all the conflicts seemed so real. Although there were a couple of scenes where I had to read it twice, to figure out whose talking or just what it meant. I would recommend this book to anybody who even remotely likes baseball or any sport.

As, the two best friends, Seth and Jimmy work hard to clinch the high school baseball league title, many things start to break up their friendship. Both boys had been having some tough family problems. When Jimmy starts getting involved with alcohol, Seth tries everything he can to save his friend from losing his future as a major league baseball player. But then something happens that will change both of their lives forever. If you are anxious to find out what happens read the novel by Carl Dueker. Heart of a Champion is a compelling book for all ages. It is best for any teenager between the ages of 12-15. This story relates to the problems of everyday teens. For sure it will clench your heart. It has been rated a five star novel(*****) by many authors and publishers for sure..

I just like to give some info on me. Never read a book. I never read a full chapter book. Untill this one. THE BEST. All of his books have a certain grab that just pulls you toward it. I guarrenty that you'll LOVE this book.

Heart of a Champion is probably the greatest book I ever read. It is about a boy named Seth who¹s dad died when he was just a little kid. His father played golf and so did Seth. Seth didn¹t like it very much however. He started playing baseball with a kid named Jimmy who had all roads leading to the majors. They go through all sorts of obstacles like school and Jimm¹ys dad getting divorced from Jimmy¹s mother. However, after all the twists and turns throughout the book, there is a great ending at the end. This is a great book for baseball lovers such as myself. It has a good plot and what makes it really interesting is its baseball knowledge. The author does a great job of putting in baseball facts and strategies as well as exciting games that Seth and Jimmy play together. If you are any kind of baseball fan but you don¹t read too much, this book will keep you reading it until the end!

Although not as original as his first novel, "On the Devil's Court," Carl Deuker has produced an excellent second novel in "Heart of a Champion." Darker in tone due to the death of the narrator's father, the alcoholism addressed in the book, and the ending, "Heart of a Champion" is also one of the best baseball novels I've ever read. The friendship between Seth and Jimmy is gripping, especially for those of us who have had friends more talented than we are. I read this novel in a single sitting, and found much the same sense of tension throughout the novel: if you love baseball, you're not going to be able to put this one down either.

Heart of a Champion is an inspiring story by Carl Deuker. This book, which is based on a true story, is extremely well written and has very realistic characters. This book follows two boy's adolesence as they live and die around their favorite sport, baseball. The characters are brought together from two different backgrounds, through their love of the game. As they enter high school they mature as adults and overcome personal challenges that come their way. This book apppeals to any baseball fan or someone who is interested in a realistic story about friendship and life.
The main characters, Jimmy and Seth, go through the typical changes of an average teenager. This aspect of the book allows adolescents to relate to some of the problems that they also face. Jimmy's character is one of the most complex characters that I have ever read about. Readers will be suprised at Jimmy's mindset and his personality changes throughout the story. The other main character, Seth plays the role of the more responsible and mature friend who must keep Jimmy grounded.
This story takes place in California in the 90s. When Jimmy and Seth are 8 they meet each other on the playground. They decide to play catch and this starts a long lasting friendship. Every Saturday for 5 years they meet each other on the playground to play catch and hit flyballs. When the two part their ways on the playground and start high school, they find out they are going to the same school. They join the high school baseball team and go through 3 seasons of high caliber championship baseball. But in their senior year, Seth starts to see his best friend spin out of control.
This is an excellent book and I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in a good, pageturner.

Jesse Johnson
2/5/03

A reader's first impression of Heart of a Champion is a tale of courage and how
friends, help friends get to through things. It is a great book to read specially if you enjoy realistic fiction and sports stories.
The main plot of the book is about a boy named Seth who lives with his mom because his dad died of cancer and they moved into a new town. Seth has trouble making friends because he is quit and humble. Then one day why he is at the park a boy named Jimmy and his dad ask Seth if he would like to play baseball with them and Seth decides to give it a try. Seth is not very good at baseball but he really likes it so he keeps on playing and getting better. Seth and Jimmy get to be real close friends and do all kinds of stuff together. They grow up together and eventually reach high school. They both try out for the team but Seth makes the Junior Varsity team but Jimmy makes the Varsity team and becomes popular at school. Jimmy starts to make poor decisions and Seth knows that he will get in trouble if he hangs out with Jimmy.
Jimmy is the wild and outgoing type, Jimmy likes to party and does not concentrate on his school work that good. Seth is the quiet type and he likes to work on his school work more. He is also an honor student and has really good grades. Seth isn't that popular, but Jimmy is popular and hangs out with the cool group.
As you know Seth and Jimmy are the main characters. Seth is more motivated on his school work and baseball. Jimmy is more motivated to baseball and wants to be a pro baseball player. I wonder how much he wants to play baseball because he makes a lot of mistakes that could hurt him in the long run.
The Heart of a Champion is a real good book that teaches you about courage, persistence, and good friendship. I really enjoyed the book and I thought that there were no boring spots in the book. The author keeps you wondering what's going to happen next after every chapter.

Carl Deuker writes books that I feel touch areas that kids today live with.I've read Painting the Black and recently finished Heart Of A Champion; I feel that both of these books give kids an idea of what can happen and how they can deal with it, even if it isn't happening to them it might be happening to a friend they know and they don't know what to do, if they read these books i feel that they can get an idea of what they can do with the situation. The books not only touch on sports but also on the issues of everyday teen life and that's the kind of book that I think every teenager should be introduced to.