Customer Reviews

Safe At Second

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Safe at Second is about a teenager named Paulie. He's a baseball fanatic; he loves to play it, but he's not so good at it. His best friend, Todd, is a great pitcher, destined for the major leagues. Paulie cheers him on, his greatest fan. But one day while Todd was pitching, a freak accident occurs: Todd is hit in the eye with a ball, forcing doctors to remove it. Paulie was there to help him. He thinks that Todd can come back and become the same pitcher that he was before the accident. I gave this book a 4 star rating because of 3 reasons. First, Scott Johnson did a very good job of using imagery and description in his book. It really made it interesting so there was never a dull or boring moment. The second reason was because of the format. I really enjoyed how it was told from Paulie's point of view. It made it more interesting to read, because you see Paulie's thoughts and feelings, and Paulie, in turn, can sometimes tell the feelings of others, which is neat. The third reason was that in this book there was not just one conflict, there were many. First, there's the struggle between Todd and his coming back to baseball. Next, there's the struggle between Todd and his girlfriend, Melissa. There's also the struggle between Paulie and his future, like taking the SATs and college. Paulie also has another struggle in that he's trying to make the varsity baseball team. This makes the book very interesting because they go from one conflict to another. In conclusion, I highly recommend this book because it keeps you wanting to read more. It's a great book, not just for people who like baseball, because it centers around the conflicts, and not necessarily baseball.

Todd Bannister, star pitcher of Edgeville High's baseball team has it all. Agents and scouts court him; he has a bright future in baseball, so it seems.

Todd's career is sidelined when he is hit in the eye by a baseball. The eye trauma is so extensive that he loses the eye and, he believes his future in baseball.

His friend Paulie won't let him give up. He sticks by Todd through thick and thin, even when Todd's depression leads him into making rash decisions such as drinking at unsupervised parties. Todd loses his abrasive girlfriend Melissa during his long convalescence and the pair re-evaluate their relationship.

Todd has plenty of time to think. Baseball was the focus of his life and Paulie's, too. Paulie is the satellite who revolves around Todd; it is in fact Todd's encouragement (and trickery) that got Paulie on the baseball team. An avid Tabletop fan and baseball statistician, Paulie's relationship with Todd appears to be only focussed on one thing - baseball. As Todd recovers mentally and physically from his traumatic injury and psychological repercussions, he encourages Paulie to be more than his personal go-fer. Paulie also copes with some major decision making and evaluation.

This is an excellent book that attests to the power of friendship; the love of baseball; team cooperation and taking that team cooperation off the diamond and far beyond. This is an author to watch out for!

Safe at Second on a scale of 1-5, it was a 4. It was about a boy, Paulie Lockwood, and his best friend, Todd Banister. The main point is, basically how far a friendship goes, and what to do with your future. Todd, a senior in high school, is an All-Star baseball player. Paulie, a jr. in high school, plays {he isn't that good} but he mainly follows Todd. Todd is being offered scholarships and MLB {Major League Baseball} contracts. Paulie is going to be alone when Todd leaves. The problems have to deal with tragedy, feelings, and mind/emotions. Out of the corner of my eye I saw it, and heard the two sounds almost together. The solid ping of the line drive off the bat. Then the ugly chunk, as the ball smacked into Todd's face and jerked his whole head backward. From all around the field I heard one loud, sharp gasp. I stampeded over with everyone else. Todd had landed hard on his right shoulder, and now, sprawling halfway off the mound, he looked as still and lumpy as an old duffle bag full of bats. Some of the guys on the field got to him first, and as I came up, one of them, Wayne Linder, turned away, his face white and sickly. I eased passed him to get closer. "He's okay," I heard myself whisper, and kneeled down behind him to put my hand half around his left shoulder. "He's all right." That was when he screamed.

I recently had a choice to read any book I wanted for my class. The book just happened to be Safe at Second. When I first started reading the book, I figured it was going to be just another book about baseball. Something that was boring and wouldn't keep me peeled to the pages. But I was very wrong. Scott Johnson did a fantastic job of twisting things to make them seem unreal, yet very likely. Safe at Second taught me to re-think some things in my life. It also increased my interest in baseball. There isn't many books that I would finish reading in one day! The content and real-life scenarios helped me to relate to the things Todd and Paulie were going through. I could understand both sides clearly, and that made the story all the more interesting. When Todd lost his eye, you could feel the intense moments he went through. You could see how it affected him and Paulie. You could see how he was changed. Todd's story takes you through a tragedy that can be overcome, yet sometimes too devastating to go through. Paulie is also changed by the tragedy. He gets to see who he really is, even if it means changing his ways. Safe at Second made me appreciate the things that I have in my own life. After reading the book, I had more respect for things I owned and the people around me. I learned from the characters in the book that life is more than just what you want, its what you get. But if you give your all, no matter what the outcome will be positive. This book is not one for a specific age group. I would recommend this book for anyone of any age. Whether you are in 3rd grade or in college, Safe at Second will surely keep you on the edge.

Do you like baseball? If you answered yes or no to that question, this would be a great book for you. It begins with two best friends playing ball on their high school team- Todd, a superstar, and Paulie, one who isn't so good but makes up for it with his knowledge of the game. Todd has been featured in Sports Illustrated, ten year olds come and ask him for his autograph, and scouts line up at his front door, and his best friend Paulie is his biggest fan.
But then Todd gets hit in the eye by a line drive.
The doctors have to amputate, and now Todd has to deal with the fact that he's not a superstar anymore. Throughout the book, Todd has his ups and downs- acting deliriously happy and then sobbing because he knows he'll never make it to the majors. Will he be able to cope? Will Paulie let him give up his dream?
THis book has everything- it was the only book that ever made me laugh at loud, and the only book that had me sobbing. It's filled with vivd pictures, and all the characters have distinct personalities. I've read this book 6 times, and it never ceases to amaze me.

I thought that the book(Safe at second) was not the best book i ever read.
The reason why i did not like it was because it seemed like it went on and on about the schools best pitcher and how he was going to make it to the pros.Then it did the same thing on when he got hit in the right eye.The book did get very depressing after that and how much he really love the game of baseball and his best firend allways trying to help him( a little too much though).After that the book did get to be a little better after he started to get back into pitching aging.the book did get very good at the end, and also i think the book had on of the best endings

I really enjoyed this book a lot. I liked the theme of baseball and the whole plot in general. I didn't really like the ending part which seemed sort off depressing. I recommened this book to baseball lovers (like me) and people that like good books in general. To bad there isn't a sequel. That would be sweet...

This book is about a man named Todd Bannister who is the best pitcher in the league. He could go to the major leagues after he got out of college. There is one thing that could hold Todd back from going to the majors; he lost his an eye by getting hit by a line drive. Todd still does the regular things like drinking at parties, then he goes out side and regurgitates because he drank too much. At school no one will talk to him because they are afraid of his fake eye. The big question in the book is, will Todd Bannister ever pitch again like he used to pitch.
A couple dislikes I had about the book was that Todd was an all-star, but he drank a lot and made it sound alright to drink. Also it made it sound like Todd's dad didn't like going to his games, but Todd always told him he was not aloud to go to Todd's games, which is not a respectable thing to say to your father.
Good things I thought about the book was that when Todd was hurt, he kept trying to get his control back and pitches back to he could pitch. Also the baseball team got a new coach that would actually let Todd pitch some of the game, instead of the other coach who never let him pitch.
People who like sports books would really like this book. Also it is very similar to some of Matt Christopher books too. This book would be good for anyone who likes sports.

I liked this book, but I was disappointed with the ending. I won't say what happened (read it!), but it certainly wasn't what I expected. I also thought that since the plot of the book was about Todd, that it should be written in his point of view, not Paulie's. As an overall book, I would definitely recommend it. I really liked the baseball part of it and I liked the way the author could make you feel the character's emotion. I thought this was a pretty good book.

Pitcher Todd Bannister is the best high school pitcher in the United States. His best friend Paulie, also his number one fan, tells the story of this major league bound player and how it came abruptly to an end when a line drive smacks him right in the. The ball hits square on the eye, the coach rushes him to the hospital, but it turns out there is nothing they can do to help it. The only thing they can do is put in a glass eye. Will Todd find the strength to ever pitch again? And what will Paulie do if Todd doesn't make the majors?

This book really freaked me out. I wondered if Todd would ever pitch again. I wondered what Paulie would do because he based his whole life around Todd. I wondered if Todd and Melissa would ever get back together. So many questions were flying through my head. I just couldn't put the book down. Todd eventually goes back to school, but it's not the same. People look at him a different way. People hold doors for him, they let him walk into class first, and they just let him have a whole bunch of special privileges

This book reminded me of the movie, "The Rookie". "The Rookie is about a 40 year old man who tries to make a comeback so he can play in the major league. "Safe at Second" is about Todd Bannister, the best high school pitcher in America, and how he gets hit in the eye by a line drive. Both Todd and the 40 year old man have to deal with some sort of setback. Todd has the problem of only being able to see out of one eye while the 40 yr. old man has the problem of him being old. Both try to make a comeback. Todd fails, but the 40 yr. old succeeds.

I picked this book because of my love of sports, especially my love for baseball. Every year, I can't wait for opening day. The sound of fastballs hitting the mitt and the yell of the crowd after a walk off home run just brings baseball fever to me. When I read the book preview, I was immediately sucked into the book so much that I couldn't put it down. I loved the party scene (it was hilarious). I would suggest this book to any baseball fan.

On a scale of 1-5 I would rate this book as a 4. The story of the book was really great but some of the language is not for young children. I can completely relate to this book because like Todd and Paulie, I'm learning about drugs and how they affect you. Todd's try at a comeback was really cool to read about, but it was also interesting see how Paulie had to switch lifestyles because he had always based it around Todd. It goes to show you, don't base your life around one thing because if something happens to that one thing, what else do you have to jump to.