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Lorimer Podium Sports Academy #4
Forward Pass
Podium Sports Academy's star goalkeeper wants nothing more than to play on Canada's National Team. Parmita works hard at school and on the pitch, so if it seems like she's avoiding boys, she hopes everyone will think it's because she wants to be the best, and not because she's secretly attracted to girls.
The team's new assistant coach may actually have the pull to get Parmita a National Team tryout, but Parmita is uncomfortable with her coach's constant flirting and accidentally-on-purpose touching. After the coach guesses her secret about her sexuality and corners her in the locker room, Parmita has to decide how far she'll go to get a tryout.
The team's new assistant coach may actually have the pull to get Parmita a National Team tryout, but Parmita is uncomfortable with her coach's constant flirting and accidentally-on-purpose touching. After the coach guesses her secret about her sexuality and corners her in the locker room, Parmita has to decide how far she'll go to get a tryout.
144 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2013
37 people want to read
About the author
Lorna Schultz Nicholson
71 books79 followersLorna Schultz Nicholson is an award winning author who has published over 50 books, including children's picture books, middle grade, YA fiction and sports non-fiction. Lorna divides her time between Edmonton and Penticton, where she and her husband share their homes with their Mexican rescue dog.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
December 17, 2015
This book seems to fall in a weird place in between children's and YA... I suppose it's good for older kids/young teens who still want to read kids books but who are at the same time ready for something a bit more serious. Because the subject matter - a coach abusing one of her students - is pretty damn serious!
This is a good stepping stone. I remember when I started to grow out of reading Sweet Valley Twins and moved onto Sweet Valley High, but only read one or two books because I just wasn't ready for that yet. The situation here is mature, but the characters still read very young and are not intimidating to a younger reader, if that makes sense. It's also not terribly explicit; it's clear enough what is going on and what Caroline is doing to Parmita, but it's not overly descriptive or graphic.
Parmita is a lovely character, and I really enjoyed the sports academy setting. I've just found out this is one in a series of books set at that academy, and I'd love to read more! All of the supporting student characters were really great - Allie, Sophia, even Jonathan - being my favourites. I'm curious about the "billet" system too; how did Allie end up with such a hideous woman?! I was also very disgusted by Parmita's billet 'father' (Reimers? I can't recall now) and his shitty attitude and prejudice, but then I suppose there always has to be one bad egg.
The ending was far too abrupt, but now I've found out this is a series perhaps that means there's a little more to come.
This is a good stepping stone. I remember when I started to grow out of reading Sweet Valley Twins and moved onto Sweet Valley High, but only read one or two books because I just wasn't ready for that yet. The situation here is mature, but the characters still read very young and are not intimidating to a younger reader, if that makes sense. It's also not terribly explicit; it's clear enough what is going on and what Caroline is doing to Parmita, but it's not overly descriptive or graphic.
Parmita is a lovely character, and I really enjoyed the sports academy setting. I've just found out this is one in a series of books set at that academy, and I'd love to read more! All of the supporting student characters were really great - Allie, Sophia, even Jonathan - being my favourites. I'm curious about the "billet" system too; how did Allie end up with such a hideous woman?! I was also very disgusted by Parmita's billet 'father' (Reimers? I can't recall now) and his shitty attitude and prejudice, but then I suppose there always has to be one bad egg.
The ending was far too abrupt, but now I've found out this is a series perhaps that means there's a little more to come.
March 20, 2017
It isn’t often that I read middle grade books (this one is listed as age appropriate for 13+) but Forward Pass, published in 2013, caught my eye as one of the few books out there with a lesbian main character and elite-level soccer. Parmita’s short term plan is to play soccer at a Canadian university, but her ultimate goal is to make the Canadian Women’s National Team (for the Olympics). Overall, a rare read at any level.
I can’t really speak to the appropriateness of this book for young teenagers. The writing level is more 9+ but the content is clearly meant for teens. To each their own. As an adult, I have mixed feelings about the book overall.
The sports angle is handled well. Parmita is believably competent at and aware of the potential in her sport. Youth tournaments and college tracks are addressed, along with travel demands and student-athlete life balance. The billet system used by the school is familiar to anyone that’s followed women’s pro-am soccer in the US, where athletes are often placed with host families for the duration of their season or contract.
The billet system also factors into Parmita’s hesitance to come out, as she lives with a very religious family and enjoys spending time with them. She is concerned that her East Indian father and his family will also struggle to accept her. But personally, she accepts herself and is waiting to be in a safer position to come out to her family and friends. She presents a good case for remaining closeted for reasons other than shame and self-loathing.
The issue of the predatory coach is where I’m torn. On one hand, it can be good to address the concept of a predatory adult and the inappropriateness of student-teacher or player-coach relationships. The power imbalance in Forward Pass is clear, with the coach controlling playing time and Parmita’s national team chances. All of the characters recognize and emphasize that this kind of relationship is wrong. However…
Positioning the gay female coach as a sexual predator is problematic. That isn’t to say that such a thing would never happen, but that with so little representation overall and with negative perceptions already in place in the real world, I’m uncomfortable with the authorial choice and the lack of counterpoint. Female coaches are still vastly outnumbered at the elite levels of the women’s game. There is still a significant risk attached to a coach’s perceived sexual orientation.
The predatory coach in Forward Pass comes across as stereotypical and flat, a fact exacerbated by the fact that nowhere in the text is the word “rape” used to describe the sexual encounter that follows Parmita explicitly saying “no.” Where serious subjects are addressed in text, particularly as the crux of the plot, they deserve to be treated with appropriate clarity and gravity in the moment and in the aftermath.
Given the overall treatment of gender and coaching at the pro and national team levels in the US and Canada, I have trouble recommending this book for any reason other than critical discussion, which Forward Pass does not provide context for.
I can’t really speak to the appropriateness of this book for young teenagers. The writing level is more 9+ but the content is clearly meant for teens. To each their own. As an adult, I have mixed feelings about the book overall.
The sports angle is handled well. Parmita is believably competent at and aware of the potential in her sport. Youth tournaments and college tracks are addressed, along with travel demands and student-athlete life balance. The billet system used by the school is familiar to anyone that’s followed women’s pro-am soccer in the US, where athletes are often placed with host families for the duration of their season or contract.
The billet system also factors into Parmita’s hesitance to come out, as she lives with a very religious family and enjoys spending time with them. She is concerned that her East Indian father and his family will also struggle to accept her. But personally, she accepts herself and is waiting to be in a safer position to come out to her family and friends. She presents a good case for remaining closeted for reasons other than shame and self-loathing.
The issue of the predatory coach is where I’m torn. On one hand, it can be good to address the concept of a predatory adult and the inappropriateness of student-teacher or player-coach relationships. The power imbalance in Forward Pass is clear, with the coach controlling playing time and Parmita’s national team chances. All of the characters recognize and emphasize that this kind of relationship is wrong. However…
Positioning the gay female coach as a sexual predator is problematic. That isn’t to say that such a thing would never happen, but that with so little representation overall and with negative perceptions already in place in the real world, I’m uncomfortable with the authorial choice and the lack of counterpoint. Female coaches are still vastly outnumbered at the elite levels of the women’s game. There is still a significant risk attached to a coach’s perceived sexual orientation.
The predatory coach in Forward Pass comes across as stereotypical and flat, a fact exacerbated by the fact that nowhere in the text is the word “rape” used to describe the sexual encounter that follows Parmita explicitly saying “no.” Where serious subjects are addressed in text, particularly as the crux of the plot, they deserve to be treated with appropriate clarity and gravity in the moment and in the aftermath.
Given the overall treatment of gender and coaching at the pro and national team levels in the US and Canada, I have trouble recommending this book for any reason other than critical discussion, which Forward Pass does not provide context for.
July 15, 2015
It's about a soccer goalkeeper!, and a female one at that. That was what drew me to the book in the first place. So many of the sports books, for teens or for adults not only forget about the female athletes, but they forget about the soccer players. It may not be one of the easiest sports to write about (although Nicholson does a pretty good job in this book), but it's the biggest sport in the world (It's just in the US of A where it gets mostly ignored. A good portion of the population could tell someone who was the last team who won the NBA championship, but if they had to name even one of the teams that was in the most recent MLS championship they'd fail horribly unfortunately).
But, I got off the topic of the book and onto my sports soap box. The book was okay. It's about Parmita, the soccer goalie for the female team at the Podium Sports Academy. She thinks that she might be gay, but that's not the main thrust of the story. Instead it revolves around an assistant goalie coach named Caroline and what she's up to.
I haven't read any of the other Podium Sports Academy stories, but they do seem like they might be interesting. This one's narrative was a bit choppy in places, although as I got deeper into the book either I got used to the narrative style or it smoothed itself out. There was also very little subtly in the plot. I wasn't anywhere near surprised by any of the twists or turns, even at the very end.
On the other hand, I really liked a lot of the characters. I knew people who in high school could have been the carbon copy of Allie, one of Parmita's friends, and I really, really liked the Sophia character. She seemed like she was just a teensie bit older than the rest of them, she seemed like more of a college student in how she approached the world, but, other than that the character hit all the right notes in the narrative.
It was a good, solid, and (for any teens who don't want to slog through long books), a very short and sweet book. A solid three star book.
I got this advanced galley through Netgalley on behalf of James Lorimer & Company hoping that I would review it.
But, I got off the topic of the book and onto my sports soap box. The book was okay. It's about Parmita, the soccer goalie for the female team at the Podium Sports Academy. She thinks that she might be gay, but that's not the main thrust of the story. Instead it revolves around an assistant goalie coach named Caroline and what she's up to.
I haven't read any of the other Podium Sports Academy stories, but they do seem like they might be interesting. This one's narrative was a bit choppy in places, although as I got deeper into the book either I got used to the narrative style or it smoothed itself out. There was also very little subtly in the plot. I wasn't anywhere near surprised by any of the twists or turns, even at the very end.
On the other hand, I really liked a lot of the characters. I knew people who in high school could have been the carbon copy of Allie, one of Parmita's friends, and I really, really liked the Sophia character. She seemed like she was just a teensie bit older than the rest of them, she seemed like more of a college student in how she approached the world, but, other than that the character hit all the right notes in the narrative.
It was a good, solid, and (for any teens who don't want to slog through long books), a very short and sweet book. A solid three star book.
I got this advanced galley through Netgalley on behalf of James Lorimer & Company hoping that I would review it.
June 18, 2013
Big thumbs up to the author for tackling a very "sensitive" subject in the YA world...actually, two subjects: sexual abuse and sexuality.
Parmita is at a special sports-oriented school in Canada. Though months from graduating high school, she's already living away from her parents, with a family near the school, sort of like an exchange student program but there is no exchange.
By day she plays soccer and tries to avoid her very hands-on coach, by night she battles with the growing attraction to her best girl friend. Nobody knows she's a lesbian.
Long story short, the coach does some inappropriate things and lays it out like this: if Parm tells, the coach will make sure she doesn't go to Nationals (a big deal) and will say it was all mutual (it wasn't.)
Parm being a young girl who hasn't yet "come out" of the closet yet is faced with some really tough choices. I fell this is an important story. Many young people face stuff like this and sadly, out of shame or fear, won't speak up. This enables people in positions of power to continue abusing others, something Parm realizes. But just when she decides to take action, someone else does it for her.
Again, I appreciated the lessons in this book and the fact it brings awareness to a serious problem, not only sexual abuse, but a teenager's fear of "coming out".
What I didn't like: 1. The story was real quick in the telling. It bypassed descriptions and emotions much of the time just to lay the story quickly on the page. Don't tell me Parmita sits there and cries, tell me what she is feeling deep inside, especially after the social network thing. WOW. I felt that warranted more emotions than we were given. 2. There was no dawning awareness of her sexuality. I'm not sure when that happened. I wanted to know when she realized she was a lesbian, what that realization was like. 3. There was a beautiful opportunity here to show the Christian community should practice "tolerance" of others. I don't like the outcome with her billet/exchange family. Perfect opp was there and passed over, to educate the family.
Parmita is at a special sports-oriented school in Canada. Though months from graduating high school, she's already living away from her parents, with a family near the school, sort of like an exchange student program but there is no exchange.
By day she plays soccer and tries to avoid her very hands-on coach, by night she battles with the growing attraction to her best girl friend. Nobody knows she's a lesbian.
Long story short, the coach does some inappropriate things and lays it out like this: if Parm tells, the coach will make sure she doesn't go to Nationals (a big deal) and will say it was all mutual (it wasn't.)
Parm being a young girl who hasn't yet "come out" of the closet yet is faced with some really tough choices. I fell this is an important story. Many young people face stuff like this and sadly, out of shame or fear, won't speak up. This enables people in positions of power to continue abusing others, something Parm realizes. But just when she decides to take action, someone else does it for her.
Again, I appreciated the lessons in this book and the fact it brings awareness to a serious problem, not only sexual abuse, but a teenager's fear of "coming out".
What I didn't like: 1. The story was real quick in the telling. It bypassed descriptions and emotions much of the time just to lay the story quickly on the page. Don't tell me Parmita sits there and cries, tell me what she is feeling deep inside, especially after the social network thing. WOW. I felt that warranted more emotions than we were given. 2. There was no dawning awareness of her sexuality. I'm not sure when that happened. I wanted to know when she realized she was a lesbian, what that realization was like. 3. There was a beautiful opportunity here to show the Christian community should practice "tolerance" of others. I don't like the outcome with her billet/exchange family. Perfect opp was there and passed over, to educate the family.
May 12, 2013
i got this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
this book was a good quick read.
this book is about a private school who has a very good soccer team. most of the players are looking for a tryout for the national team which then leads them to the Olympics.
parmita is the star goalie for this team. she works really hard with her practices and then she heads home to her house parents and works on her studies. She wants to be a surgeon and knows that she has to get all A's so she can get the education that she wants. she also wants to play for the national team so she can play for the Olympics.
the teams assistant coach was a formal goalie for the national team and is a really go player and has been teaching Parmita everything that she knows. Then after a few unwanted advances the assistant couch tells her that she knows about her sexuality and corners her in the locker room. Parmita's assistant couch starts to kiss her and secretly touch her when the rest of the team is not around. worried that everyone will find out her secret she has to find out with herself how far she is willing to go for this national team tryout.
on top of the all stress her house parents are full blow Christians. having a secret with her sexuality can ruin her house situation and her availability to play with the great Canadian soccer team. also, she is not ready for the high school to find out that she is a lesbian. she has a plan to let it all come out when she is accepted into a great college.
this is a great coming to age book and i suggest everyone to read it if you want a quick weekend read.
this book was a good quick read.
this book is about a private school who has a very good soccer team. most of the players are looking for a tryout for the national team which then leads them to the Olympics.
parmita is the star goalie for this team. she works really hard with her practices and then she heads home to her house parents and works on her studies. She wants to be a surgeon and knows that she has to get all A's so she can get the education that she wants. she also wants to play for the national team so she can play for the Olympics.
the teams assistant coach was a formal goalie for the national team and is a really go player and has been teaching Parmita everything that she knows. Then after a few unwanted advances the assistant couch tells her that she knows about her sexuality and corners her in the locker room. Parmita's assistant couch starts to kiss her and secretly touch her when the rest of the team is not around. worried that everyone will find out her secret she has to find out with herself how far she is willing to go for this national team tryout.
on top of the all stress her house parents are full blow Christians. having a secret with her sexuality can ruin her house situation and her availability to play with the great Canadian soccer team. also, she is not ready for the high school to find out that she is a lesbian. she has a plan to let it all come out when she is accepted into a great college.
this is a great coming to age book and i suggest everyone to read it if you want a quick weekend read.
July 27, 2014
Parmita is a star soccer goalie at an elite sports high school. She desperately wants to make the Canadian National Soccer team and play in the Olympics. A good student, hard-working and dedicated, she will do whatever it takes to meet her goals. Lately, her new goalie coach is being a little too friendly. But that coach may have the most influence toward helping Parmita make the National team. Decisions loom and Parmita is torn by her own emotions. This is a quick read that is part of the Podium Sports Academy series. The allure of the book is the fast-pace, the contemporary issues and the sports connection. In this instance, the jock is a girl and the reality of the situation is sensitive but resolved by the end. The book would be a natural for the GBLT community but it would also appeal to the average high school student. Books that showcase strong female athletes are not numerous and this book would be a welcome addition to sports fiction offerings in schools.
July 6, 2013
Forward Pass ticks so many unusual-for-its-genre boxes that it’s practically a unicorn: it’s a teen sports novel aimed at girls, and its heroine is both south-east Asian and gay. Needless to say, I was already on-side with Forward before I’d even cracked it open (ooh, sports metaphor!).
Sadly, Forward’s central plotline (tackling another unusual facet: the taboo of coach-athlete relationships, where the aggressor is a woman) takes entirely too long to get going. And, once the action does begin, it all seems entirely mechanical. Too much like an after-school special; not enough like real life.
Forward is a novel I wanted to like, but it’s missing the wit and vibrancy of the best teen fiction.
Sadly, Forward’s central plotline (tackling another unusual facet: the taboo of coach-athlete relationships, where the aggressor is a woman) takes entirely too long to get going. And, once the action does begin, it all seems entirely mechanical. Too much like an after-school special; not enough like real life.
Forward is a novel I wanted to like, but it’s missing the wit and vibrancy of the best teen fiction.
June 23, 2013
finished 6/22/13
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews