Open Court (review)

Tennis has been thirteen-year-old Hall's life, and she's being recruited for high-powered Bickford Tennis Academy, which would give her opportunities for international play and offer her the best chance to get to the pros. The problem is that she's not sure she wants to go: she's having fun with new friend Polly, who's sick of the pressure to be a math genius; she's finally getting attention from her dream boy, Luke; most of all, she's haunted by the memory of the mental breakdown of a friend and fellow player. Hall's narration sometimes sounds a little old for thirteen, but her dilemma is cast credibly and unprogrammatically: this isn't just a cautionary or adulatory tale of prodigy but a genuine examination of a girl faced with a large and complicated decision. The book is clear-eyed about the commitment, financial and otherwise, that Hall's family has already made to tennis to get her this far, and it makes a reasonable case for the logic of moving up to the genuine big leagues for financial as well as other reasons (Hall will finally get real sponsorship and perhaps even a scholarship to Bickford). Throughout, Hall is a sympathetic and three-dimensional figure, a solid and focused athlete who loves the sport but who remains uncertain about the price she must pay for following her talent, yet she's also clearly drawn as an everyday kid, with the book reading appealingly like a more conventional story of school and friends. Tennis fans will appreciate the book's understanding of the sinewy joys of the game, while bleacher-warmers will enjoy the character drama and be both glad and sorry that they're not faced with Hall's life choice.