Orbiting Jupiter

Schmidt, Gary D. Orbiting Jupiter. 2015. 183p. ISBN 978-0-544-46222-9. Available at FIC SCH on the library shelves.

Jack and his parents live on a farm in central Maine. For years before Jack was born, his mother and father were foster parents, providing a safe place for children who needed out of their family. When Jack came along, the family stopped fostering other children and focused on Jack. Now twelve, Jack is surprised when his parents reluctantly agree to host Joseph, a fourteen-years-old 8th grader who comes from a residential youth prison where he served some time.

Bullied at school, Joseph often retreats within himself. He is quiet and rarely talks. Reluctant to work on the farm at first, he soon finds that he enjoys milking Rosie. The farm provides structure to Joseph's life, and he begins to open up a little. Jack soon learns that Joseph has a newborn daughter named Jupiter. He's never met her, and is dying to do finally holds her in his arms.

As Jack discovers more facts about Joseph's tragic life, outside forces once again threaten to derail the improvements that Joseph has made over the last few months. Can Jack and his family manage to anchor Joseph and help him find peace and Jupiter?

A tragic story with a bittersweet ending, Orbiting Jupiter provides a unique look about teenage fatherhood and mistreatment. Fans of hard-hitting topics will devour this book.

One Goal: A Coach, a Team, and the Game that Brought a Divided Town Together

Bass, Amy. One Goal: A Coach, a Team, and the Game that Brought a Divided Town Together. 2018. 328p. ISBN 978-1-54911568-4. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

In the 1990s, a vicious civil war tore Somalia apart. Famine, oppression and national mismanagement contributed to the deaths of millions, and to the exile of even more. Refugees poured out of the horn of Africa and spread around the world. Many refugees were resettled in the United States, and a few of them ended up in Lewiston, Maine. A former mill community, the town had been economically devastated in the 1970s. Rents were plentiful and cheap, and the community was at first welcoming.

These newly arrived residents attracted family members and friends, and soon hundreds and then thousands of refugee moved from all parts of the United States to Lewiston. Tensions soon grew between the new arrivals and those longtime residents, many of whom were one or two generations removed from being immigrants themselves. These tensions spilled in the local schools, creating conflicts between the two groups. When the soccer coach noticed the talent of some of the Somali students, he recruited them on the team, and soon perennial loser Lewiston Blue Devils began winning games throughout the state.

Many in the community resisted these changes, but others embraced the new arrivals. The team learned to play together, and appreciate each other's culture. The coach successfully forged unity among his players, and achieved Lewiston's first soccer state championship in 2015 through grit, determination, and a realization that prejudices only serve to undermine our sense of humanity.

An amazing true story, fans of underdogs will appreciate how a disparate group came together and helped integrate their communities into a vibrant town culture. Other amazing sport stories include Unbroken and The Boys of the Boat.