Customer Reviews

Playing Without the Ball

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

 

 

Basketball isn't a big sport in the town of Sturbridge--wrestling is what they are known for. But for Jay, basketball is the only sport. Jay is a high school student living on his own. His mother left him and his father when Jay was only a child, and his father raised him alone ever since then. But now his father has decided to travel across the country and settle in California. He thinks Jay should come, too, but Jay wants a chance to stay and play basketball for his high school's team. He starts a job working as a cook in a bar on nights and weekend, and he lives for free in a couple of rooms above the bar.

Living alone doesn't bother Jay much. He focuses on basketball all the time. He wakes up early to play pickup games down at the gym. He plays in the afternoons and the evenings and every other time he can find. Basketball is the focus of his life, and he can't wait for basketball season to start at school. Plus, there are a handful of girls he is interested in who keep him on his toes--Spit, the singer from the band that plays at the bar; Julie, a girl who comes to the bar to see him; and Dana, a girl he plays against in the morning basketball league.

This is an interesting year for Jay, regardless of what happens with the girls and with the team.

The story is good, with plenty of varied and vivid characters. Jay himself, though, was very hard to believe. He is a high school student living all alone, surrounded by drugs and alcohol, and he never gets into any trouble. I simply couldn't buy that as reality.

This book was quite an interesting story about love and basketball, not necessarily in that order. Jay, the main character, is a 17 year-old that was abandoned by his parents. His mother left him, when he was 9 and his father left him in Sturbridge, Pennsylvania to move to California, during Jay's last year of high school. His father left him under the "eye" of a bar owner named Shorty. Jay lives above the bar and he is employed at the bar, as a cook.
It is Jay's desire to play for the high school basketball team. He tries out for the team, and even makes it to the 3rd day, but he gets cut from the team. He is disappointed about this, but he gets up the next day to go play at the YMCA. He decides to try-out for the church league. He makes the team and they go all the way to the Championship. During his run with the church league, he meets a girl named Kylie. On the other hand, his friend, Sarita (Spit), is jealous. Nevertheless, Jay and Kylie fall in love.

Have you ever wondered about what your friends mean when they say girls come into play in their life? Jay in the book " playing without the ball" is faced with the same type of problem as what your friends mean. This book has that same conflict but with girls and basketball. This was the greatest book I have ever read, not just because basketballs my favorite sport but because it dragged me right into the book and I could not put it down. I used to hate reading, since this book I found out how exciting it can be. This book had a lot of details in it. Jay had played basketball for a church team in league at the Y. His team then makes it to the championship game as they play the toughest team in the league. This book has a great deal of meaning, and I just loved it!

In the town of Sturbridge basketball is not a very popular sport because it is more of a wrestling city but for Jay, a senior in high school, basketball is the only sport that matters. Jay lives alone because his mom left him when he was 9 and his dad left the summer before his senior year started. He moved to California for a better job. Jay lives in an apartment above a bar where he cooks.Living alone doesn't bother Jay much. He likes to play basketball. He wakes up early to play pickup games down at the YMCA. When Jay tries out for the high school team things don't go so well. He gets cut but decides to play for the church league at the Y. Plus, there are a handful of girls he is interested in: Spit, the singer from the band that plays at the bar; Julie, a girl who comes to the bar to see him; and Dana, a girl he plays against in the morning basketball league. This is a good story that i very well enjoyed.

The name of the book is Playing without the Ball by Rich Wallace.
The genre of this book is a little bit of adventure and sports. This book is good for all ages who like to read about sports. Their isn't any bad language and isn't hard to read. The book has a little bit of action so it is kind of hard to put down.

In the book their is two main characters named Jay and Sarah, they are best friends and like to play basketball together. Jay likes to play basketball and enjoys goin to the YMCA. Jay's friend Sarah likes to play basketball too. Sarah and Jay go through a lot together. One of the quotes from the book was "don't go sticking up for for him" Sarahs says when Jay is getting yelled at.

I thought the book was good but, i think there could be a little more stuff about basketball. I encourage other people to read this book.

Jay McLeod is a senior in the town of Sturbridge. His mother took off when he was nine leaving him in the care of his father. Bored with the single parent routine, Dad decides to go to California in search of a new life. 17 year old Jay stays behind with hopes of making the basketball team. Dad makes an arrangement with friend and local bar owner, Shorty, to allow Jay to live in an room above the bar and work as a cook on the weekends. The book details Jay's final year of high school as he faces the many trials and tribulations of a not-so-typical 17 year old, on his own.
Although the book holds the readers interest, the ending was a disappointment. Rich Wallace does a great job developing the characters, yet at the end, the reader is left hanging. I think the book would have enormous appeal to young male athletes because of the play-by-play descriptions of basketball games. The female characters in the book are interesting, yet I think the average teenage girl would become bored with all of the detail on the inner-workings of basketball. Overall, the book is easy to read. The format-the book is written in four quarters-is very "reader-friendly". I fear many teens would be disappointed when they reach the end of the book.

This book is about a 17 years old boy, named Jay. He doesn't live with his parents, but gets along very well for just 17 years old. He gets cut his senior year from the high school basketball team which was very hard on him. This helps him on his relationships with friends and girlfriends. He joins a basketball team at YMCA after he got cut and is doing well until the unthinkable happens. The good point guard that took his starting position is cut during the season and he joins a team in the YMCA league too. He is very good and they need to beat his team to win the championship. It's hard for Jay but he pulls off the best game he has ever played. They win and it leaves him feeling like he just won life. But in Jay's case it was!

The only reason I didn't rate this book as five star is becuase of its ending. It started out good but when I completed it I felt as if I had wasted my time reading it. The author does a very good job capturing the reality of the basketball court as well as life of a person on their own. Jay would be a typical 17 year old but without parents is more mature. That's what I like about him. Jay lives above a club where he works. He doesn't own a car or any kind of transportation but everywhere he goes is in walking distance. His best friend is a girl name Sarita but she goes by the name Spits. She is a very wild 21 year old doing drugs, sex, and crime,none of which Jay does. If you have ever read "Wrestling Sturbridge", then you will enjoy this book. I hope you try this book as I enjoyed the book but was very frustrated with the ending.

In Rich Wallace's novel "Playing Without the Ball", Jay Mcleod has to overcome the struggle of living alone after his parents leave him in a dingy apartment above a bar. Wallace portrays the characters as interesting subjects that Jay encounters in his last year of school. Jay is cut from the basketball team and moves on to make new friends and bring his skill to a whole new level. This book caught my interest, but in the end it left much to be desired. It started off quick and gave lots of information but when I had completed it, I felt as though I had wasted the time it took to read it. The only people that I recommend read this book are 6th graders looking for something to take up free time. I can promise you now, I will never read another novel by Rich Wallace again. If I ever received this book as a gift, I would tape it shut and use it as a doorstop.

Jay McLeod is growing up fast. When his father moves to California, Jay stays behind in Sturbridge, PA, to play his senior year of high school basketball. Jay's mother had moved out long before, so this leaves Jay on his own. He lives in an apartment over the cafe where he works as a cook. When he fails to make the basketball team, he joins a Methodist youth group so he can play on their team in the YMCA league.

The author skillfully captures the action on the basketball court. Readers who enjoyed his "Wrestling Sturbridge" will enjoy this as well. This book, however, cannot be put in the hands of as broad an audience because of Jay's sexual activity. There is no graphic description and the author does include a couple of redeeming points: Jay practices safe sex, and his love-live hits a snag when a college-girl he has his eye on learns of his casual sexual relationship with another girl.

I recommend this book for 10th grade and up.

I read the book, Playing Without the Ball, by Rich Wallace. It is about a boy, who tries to find himself, and falls in love along the way. I liked this book because it is about a teenager who loves playing basketball and will do anything to play it.I love basketball to, so I could kind of relate to it. It wasn't a really challenging book for me, so I could read it fast. I enjoyed it because there wasn't really a conflict and nothing seriously bad happens to anybody.
This book is about a boy named Jay, who was left to live on his own, in Sturbridge, Pennsylvania, after his parents had gotten a divorce. Now that he is on his own, he lives in a crummy apartment above Shorty's bar. He works as a cook in the bar, even though he is only seventeen years old. Since he has nobody to turn to, he has limited choices to a job.
It is basketball try-outs for the inner city team. When Jay is rejected, he tries to find another way to play basketball. He tries out for the Church team and is qualified. He makes a lot of new friends while playing for the Church. One of Jay's teammates has a friend named Kylie that she introduces to him, and in the end, falls in love with her. But there is a problem. Jay's friend, Sarita, also known as Spit, really likes him. Sarita works in the bar with Jay once in a while. She has her own band and plays there a couple nights a week. Sarita is a druggie and alcoholic. She is always getting baked. Jay tries to help her sometimes.Whenever Jay is with the girl he likes, alone, Spit ruins it for him by pretending that Jay is with her.When Sarita does that, Kylie gets mad a t Jay and doesn't talk to him for a long period of time.
Playing for the Church basketball team really pays off for Jay in the end when the Championship arrives.
Rich Wallace used many literary elements within the novel. When he described the basketball games, he used so much imagery that it would feel like you were actuall yin the game and playing it. He left me in suspense a lot throughout the novel too. He would almost tease you with the words. Characterization was also used frequently when two people would be talking and you could just picture the characters facial expressions because described them so well.
Rich Wallace is a very good author. I am sure I will read more of his books in the future. I gave this book five stars because of the authors wonderful imagery and literary talent.