Winning

by Robin F. Brancato

When a football accident leaves high school senior Gary Madden paralyzed from the neck down, he is forced to face the limitations of life as a disabled person. Gary, newly paralyzed from the neck down, must put away his "superjock" image of himself and start his life anew.

"Handled honestly and sensitively." —School Library Journal

Genres: Young Adult, Sports

224 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

Reviews

[Bill Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book when I was about 13 because I thought it was about football. It was one of the first books that I really connected with. It's great young adult fiction.

[Selina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bit underwhelming. I thought the subject matter was handled well, but the characters were very one dimensional. The only characters that had depth were Gary and Mrs. Treer. Diane seemed very eager and irritating. I also found the relationship between Mrs. Treer and Gary to be a bit awkward and uncomfortable. She was drinking shots with her high school students. It irritated me a bit. Granted, this was in the 1970s when the drinking age was lower, but I still found it odd.

The novel just sort of ended. No real conclusion, and that is something that I would have liked to read about.

[Mesfioui Mamoun · Rating 4 out of 5]

The main character in this story is Gary. Gary introduces himself in a hospital. Gary has lying on his stomach because he broke his spinal column. The nurse tells him that his “friends are coming to visit him”. Gary was rewarded as one of the best team in which we still do not know which sport it is. Gary has gone on the newspaper the best athlete is wet hospitalized. The school started asking themselves if the football team would be safe? So know we know that the sport is Football. Gary felt so lonely that he asked for company. So the hospital allowed company. His teacher brings him a book as a gift. And then and then the most shocking part, which you will know I, the next paragraph.