From the #1 bestselling author of Heat, Travel Team and
Million-Dollar Throw comes a feel-good basketball tale
reminiscent of The Blind Side.
Forced to live on his own after his mom dies and her
boyfriend abandons him, 12-year-old Jayson does whatever it
takes to get by. He will do anything to avoid the foster
care system. Besides, his real home has always been the
beat-up basketball court behind the projects in the North
Carolina hills, and his family has always been his friends
and teammates.
He manages to get away with his deception until the day he
gets caught stealing a new pair of basketball sneakers. Game
over. Within a day a social worker places him with a family
from the other side of town, the Lawtons. New home, new
school, new teammates.
Jayson, at first, is combative, testing the Lawtons'
patience at every turn. He wants out, yet the Lawtons refuse
to take the bait. But not everyone in Jayson's new life is
so ready to trust him--and even Jayson's old friends give
him a hard time now that he's attending a school full of
rich kids. It's on Jayson to believe that he deserves a
better life than the one he once had.
The ultimate prize if he can? A trip to play in the state
finals at Cameron Indoor Stadium–home to the Duke Blue
Devils and launching pad to his dream of playing big time
college ball. Getting there will be a journey that reaches
far beyond the basketball court.
In the tradition of uplifting stories like The Blind Side,
Fast Break has all the family-friendly sports action Mike
Lupica has become known and loved for.