Ben has been wrestling in his best friend Al's shadow since ninth grade. Everyone expects Al to win the state championship this year. Ben wants that state title, though, badly. He's willing to risk the friendship to take Al down and make something of himself before he is dragged down to follow in the footsteps of the wrestling alum in his town. They all work in his dead-end town at a cinder block factory ( )

The finest young adult novel I've ever read (and there's been some mighty good competition in the past five years or so, the field attracting talented people like Philip Reeve and Michael Chabon). A terrific story, the central character credible and fallible, the novel, by turns, wry and suspenseful. "Coming of age" doesn't do it justice. This is an authentic depiction of young adulthood and I recommend it whole-heartedly... ( )