Reviewed by Aspen, a high school student

Henson Blayze is a 13 year old teen entering 8th grade. He’s looking forward to the new school year and playing football. The small, mostly-white town of Great Mountain, Mississippi sees Henson as their star and ticket to a varsity football championship. They make shirts, give him special privileges, and he even has an agent, a friend named Flowell. Some of the Black people in town warn Henson that most people don’t see him for who he really is, and to be careful. Henson brushes that off, especially after the beginning of his first game, where he helps his team score over 30 points. At halftime, however, he learned that his close friend, 10 year old Menkah Jupiter, was beaten by two white police officers. Henson goes to him, which infuriates most of the townspeople, and their adoration for him turns to anger. Soon, Henson must decide if football is more important than supporting Menkah. The more Henson learns from his father, a local vineyard owner, the more he realizes what he must do.

The author tells a story that isn’t easily forgettable. This is a powerful book about injustice, being true to yourself, and calling out racial injustice. Henson is both exceptional and incredibly human, and this book delivers the message that it is those two aspects that make Henson, and all of us, worthy of value and love.