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Love Stories For Young Adults #40
Playing for Keeps
When Claudia tries out for the men's soccer team, she ends up taking over her boyfriend's place on the team, yet her boyfriend can't cope with it and so suddenly breaks up with her, forcing Claudia to make a very difficult decision. Original.
192 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 7, 1999
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About the author
Nina Alexander
49 books9 followersNina Alexander, born in 1942, is the author of many children's books, including books written for the Magic Attic Club series.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 21, 2016
First allow me to preface this review by acknowledging that this book was first polished in '99 and that for the landscape of that time, I believe this book was probably a real game-changer (all puns intended).
That all being said, I thought the book was terribly, terribly cheesy and I've been called a total cheese-ball on more than one occasion. But my gripes with the narrative are also what makes the novel so authentic to the teen experience. The entire time I was reading, I cringed and groaned, wondering why these kids couldn't just be honest with themselves or each other when they knew that would have saved them all the hurt and heartache that was the majority of the book. But as a 23-year-old reader of a teen novel I had to quickly check myself and realize that they couldn't because as a teenager you're often not sure of or even taught how to be honest with your own feelings - let alone recognize others! So I must say that Nina Alexander's portrayal of teens struggling with their feelings and how to communicate with each other was very accurate - painfully authentic. And while I wasn't too pleased with some of the super stereotyped characters, who were little more than props in Claudia and Aaron's drama, I also had to admit that several of them existed in my high school as well, and when I was a teen I wasn't very keen to look harder and see them for anymore than their labels or extracurriculars anymore than our protagonists do.
Now, what I loved about "Playing for Keeps" was Alexander's ability to create a totally real high school boy in Aaron's character, a kid who genuinely believes he's in love, is both coolly self-confident and deeply insecure, recognizes his flaws and panics at how to fix his mistakes often making more in the process. And get this - he's frisky but sex isn't the only thing he cares about and Alexander's writing didn't have to beat anyone over the head with that point to get it across. Awesome! Likewise the depth of and exploration of Claudia's character might feel a little refreshing and deeply familiar to any person who has questioned why they don't fit their mold as society dictates they ought to. It was also kind of cool to read a female character who could be as full of herself and blinded to others' predicaments as a male character could and NOT be demonized or persecuted for it. I especially appreciated that Jenna, the veritable voice of reason in this novel, was always real and straightforward for Claudia but never mean, judgmental, or attacking. Finally, it was really sweet how the characters were able to finally process their feelings within themselves and then with one another. It's an ending that might seem too obvious, but is also totally right for this novel. Overall it was a good, cheesy teen romance/quasi coming-of-age story.
That all being said, I thought the book was terribly, terribly cheesy and I've been called a total cheese-ball on more than one occasion. But my gripes with the narrative are also what makes the novel so authentic to the teen experience. The entire time I was reading, I cringed and groaned, wondering why these kids couldn't just be honest with themselves or each other when they knew that would have saved them all the hurt and heartache that was the majority of the book. But as a 23-year-old reader of a teen novel I had to quickly check myself and realize that they couldn't because as a teenager you're often not sure of or even taught how to be honest with your own feelings - let alone recognize others! So I must say that Nina Alexander's portrayal of teens struggling with their feelings and how to communicate with each other was very accurate - painfully authentic. And while I wasn't too pleased with some of the super stereotyped characters, who were little more than props in Claudia and Aaron's drama, I also had to admit that several of them existed in my high school as well, and when I was a teen I wasn't very keen to look harder and see them for anymore than their labels or extracurriculars anymore than our protagonists do.
Now, what I loved about "Playing for Keeps" was Alexander's ability to create a totally real high school boy in Aaron's character, a kid who genuinely believes he's in love, is both coolly self-confident and deeply insecure, recognizes his flaws and panics at how to fix his mistakes often making more in the process. And get this - he's frisky but sex isn't the only thing he cares about and Alexander's writing didn't have to beat anyone over the head with that point to get it across. Awesome! Likewise the depth of and exploration of Claudia's character might feel a little refreshing and deeply familiar to any person who has questioned why they don't fit their mold as society dictates they ought to. It was also kind of cool to read a female character who could be as full of herself and blinded to others' predicaments as a male character could and NOT be demonized or persecuted for it. I especially appreciated that Jenna, the veritable voice of reason in this novel, was always real and straightforward for Claudia but never mean, judgmental, or attacking. Finally, it was really sweet how the characters were able to finally process their feelings within themselves and then with one another. It's an ending that might seem too obvious, but is also totally right for this novel. Overall it was a good, cheesy teen romance/quasi coming-of-age story.
February 28, 2013
is it the sport you love most or your boyfriend. in this case, your boyfriend. when you think you dont miss him and you dont need him, that is when you need him the most.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews