GAMES

Two middle-school boys have an affinity for getting into fights with each other to the point where schoolmates are taking bets against them. Boots doesn’t like Mick because of his perceived superiority complex. Mick doesn’t hate Boots; he just can’t resist the opportunity to instigate fights with him. Following the latest fight, the new principal, rather than suspending them, requires the two to play games together everyday for several hours through lunch. The fights escalate to “dares.” Mick is dared to throw paint on the library and statues in front of it—of particular meaning to him, an avid reader. Boots is dared to steal something from the music store owned by a man who treats Boots better than his abusive father. Both boys regret the dares but must live with the repercussions. Will the games allow the boys to work through their differences, or will the fights become more than they can handle? Full of heartbreak and betrayal, this realistic tale will give middle-school readers something to ponder. (Fiction. 11-15)