Collateral Damage

Support and Defend

by Patrick Jones

Having a parent return from military duty is a dream come true. But sometimes, coming home comes with problems.

Tyshawn can't wait to show off his three-pointers. His dad, a former basketball star and a sergeant in the US Army, is finally coming home from overseas. But Ty isn't prepared for how serious his dad's traumatic brain injury is. Neither is his mom. When Ty is left to care for his dad, it's hard to keep up with his own life--and his girlfriend, his coach, and his teachers all take notice. He may not be the injured one, but he needs to figure out how to cope with this new situation--and fast.

-- "Journal"

128 pages, ebook

First published November 1, 2015

About the author

Patrick Jones is the author of five realistic teen novels, most recently Stolen Car((Walker / Bloomsbury, 2008). His first young adult novel Things Change (Walker & Company, 2004) was named by the Young Adult Library Services Association as a best book for reluctant readers, and was runner-up in the Teen Buckeye Book Award selected by Ohio teens. His second novel Nailed was published by Walker / Bloomsbury in spring 2006 and was a runner-up for the Great Lake Book Award. His 2007 novel, Chasing Tail Lights, is nominated for the Minnesota Books Awards. His most recent (and last) professional publication is Connecting with Reluctant Readers (Neal-Schuman, 2006). In 2006, he won lifetime achievement awards from both the Catholic Library Association, and the American Library Association. Jones is a frequent speaker at library conferences, having visited all fifty states, as well as in Canada, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand. Jones grew up in Flint, Michigan, but now lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Read more at his web page www.connectingya.com, including FAQs about Things Change and Nailed (perfect for book reports!). NOTE: After a bruising experience with another author, he's limited his reviews on Good Reads to only raves as not to disturb the "fellowship" of YA writers.

Reviews

[Kevin Palma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Collateral Damage is a book about a kid who dosen't have enough time in the day to do everything he needs. He was living a very happy life and was exited for his dad to come back from the army until he came back very physically limited. Now he has to find a way to deal with school, basketball, his dad, and his girlfriend. I think this is a good book because it is a realistic scenario of how family members of a veteran might struggle. Also it is a great story of how he tries to over come his struggles with the help of someone surprising.

[Trent Fasciana]

During chapter 2 of the book, Ty talks more about his dads relationship with him.