End Zone Thunder (Sports Illustrated Kids Graphic Novels)

Description

Hank Thunder Wilde and Jonas Lightning Fine are total opposites. Jonas is flashy, while Hank lets his booming hits do the talking. However, both teens have one thing in common -- their competition to become team captain is hurting the Cyclones' run at the state championship. Will Thunder and Lightning rip the Cyclones apart, or will the two wide receivers come together to create the perfect offensive storm?

Scott Ciencin is a New York Times bestselling author of children's and adult fiction. He has written comic books, trading cards, video games, television shows, as well as many non-fiction projects. He lives in Sarasota, Florida with his beloved wife, Denise, and his best buddy, Bear, a golden retriever. Gerardo Sandoval is a professional comic book illustrator from Mexico. He has worked on many well-known comics including Tomb Raider books from Top Cow Production. He has also worked on designs for posters and card sets. Benny Fuentes lives in Villahermosa, Tabasco in Mexico, where the temperature is just as hot as the sauce. He studied graphic design in college, but now he works as a full-time colorist in the comic book and graphic novel industry for companies like Marvel, DC Comics, and Top Cow Productions. He shares his home with two crazy cats, Chelo and Kitty, who act like they own the place.

Ok, let me start out by announcing that I am NOT a sports fan. I'm not into sports...not a sports person whatsoever. You may have guessed this by the fact that I run a network of nerdy websites. I mean, I review books....what'd you seriously expect, right? Here is the thing with these releases from Capstone Kids [Stone Arch Books]....they rock, plain and simple. Why? Read on.... I gave this stack of books from Capstone and Sports Illustrated Kids to my own children and they went nuts! They too aren't into sports, but these aren't books for jocks. These are extreme sports and the focus is really on the characters and story. The sports hobbies are really just a backdrop. They're fun and interesting and not at all geared just towards jocky kids. We wanted to feature this series and bring them to your attention, whether you're a librarian, teacher or a parent, these titles should be in your possession! They can be purchased in hardback library binding or softcover. http: //booklegiondotcom.blogspot.com/2010/02/sports-illustrated-kids-book-series.html-- "Book Legion" Sports Illustrated Kids, in conjunction with Stone Arch Books, created a series of sports related fictional comic stories for elementary and middle school kids. The comics are designed to teach lessons on teamwork, sharing, anger control, bullying, fair play, disability inclusion, gender inclusion, and other lessons through a sports framework. Both mainstream and alternative sports are included: - Snowboarding - Baseball - Football - Basketball - Paintball - Hockey - Skateboarding - Soccer Many of the stories feature an overenthusiastic or even out-of-control parent or coach who pushes a kid to be overly aggressive and win at all costs. After a quick talk with a sage advisor they change their ways and even apologize to the player. Okay, so it's an ending with a pretty-bow. I'm typically more of a fan of authentic stories rather than teachable moment morality tales or after-school specials, but I understand the place that morality tales play in the classroom especially with younger kids. Considering the discussion of bullying within schools and society recently, perhaps we need more direct instruction on how to treat other people and behave within society. I think these would be well played on the elementary or early middle school level, but I suspect seventh and eighth graders might wholly reject the titles with their eye rolling, sighing and general sardonic teenagerness. That doesn't mean they don't need the lessons or should not have the lessons, but you might encounter resistance. The elementary level is where this series will do its good. Classroom teachers and even physical education teachers could use this series to help instruct kids on the complicated issues of bullying, ball hogging, aggression, and extreme sports pressures. Even on the elementary level we see students pushed very hard by parents or coaches to accel, win and often hurt or punish the other team. Learning to deal with those pressures at an early level can help with character development on and off the field. ART REVIEW SI Kids comics are designed like a TV sports show with stats, bios, and after-game interviews. The whole package is designed to engage reluctant readers in a TV-style experience. Once hooked, it can teach them honorable sports conduct. In a further attempt to gain entrance into modern minds, SI Kids comics use colorized manga with simple panel layouts, which is popular among youth. AGE RECOMMENDATION Chris' Rating: Ages 7 and older Publisher's Reading Level: Grades 2-3 Publisher's Interest Level: Grades 3-8 Lexile levels, ATOS, and Guided Reading levels are available on all the titles in the series. BE AWARE There are bullies and ultra-aggressive parents, but they always learn their lessons in the end. OTHER INFORMATION Publisher: Stone Arch Books Genre: Sports Format: Reinforced Library Binding Pages: 56 Color: Full color Google Previews are also available for some of the titles. CHRIS' RECOMMENDATION: Recommended-- "The Graphic Classroom Blog" The book has been professionally drawn and styled and it shows. Done in a style typical of comics and superhero cartoons with angular faces and jawlines and manga-type hairstyles. This is definitely a high-low reader, with a reading level of 1.7 and interest level up to 14 yo. The two receivers on the team are competitive with each other to such a degree that the other players are beginning to find it detrimental to the team, even though both are the best players on the team. When the captain of the team moves away suddenly they both vie for the position of the new captain and the coach puts them both through an intense regime to see who really wants it most. But what exactly is the coach looking for? My only problem with this book is my own personal fault in that I don't understand a thing about football! And this book talks football. But that aside, the teens are presented very well, speaking and acting just like real-life teens (keeping in mind that Stone Arch only prints family friendly material). I recommend this book and having read Avalanche Freestyle previously I find the whole series is worthy of recommendation. 4/5 http: //back-to-books.blogspot.com/2011/01/two-easy-reader-graphic-novels-from.html-- "Back to Books Blog"