A collection of stories about high school students from one end of the social spectrum to the other.

Triumphant wins, gut-wrenching losses, last-second shots, underdogs, competition, and loyalty—it’s fun to be a fan. But when a football player takes a hit to the head after yet another study has warned of the dangers of CTE, or when a team whose mascot was born in an era of racism and bigotry takes the field, or when a relief pitcher accused of domestic violence saves the game, how is one to cheer? Welcome to the club for sports fans who care too much. In Loving Sports When They Don’t Love You Back, acclaimed sports writers Jessica Luther and Kavitha A. Davidson tackle the most pressing issues in sports, why they matter, and how we can do better. For the authors, “sticking to sports” is not an option—not when our taxes are paying for the stadiums, and college athletes aren’t getting paid at all. But simply quitting a favorite team won’t change corrupt and deplorable practices, and the root causes of many of these problems are endemic in our wider society. An essential read for modern fans, Loving Sports When They Don’t Love You Back challenges the status quo and explores how we might begin to reconcile our conscience with our fandom.

Best-selling author Rob Reid makes reading aloud to children and teens easy by selecting titles in high-interest topics published between 2000 and 2008.

Let's play football! Through large, full-color action photographs and simple text, Football introduces beginning readers to the basic rules of the game and encourages them to try playing. A labeled diagram helps readers identify the different areas on a football field, and a picture glossary reinforces new vocabulary. Football also features reading tips for teachers and parents, a table of contents, and an index. Football is part of Jump!'s I Love Sports series.

CTE, Media, and the NFL: Framing a Public Health Crisis as a Football Epidemic examines the central role of mediain constructing an entangled relationship between chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and the National Football League (NFL), challenging a predominately symbiotic sports/media complex. The authors of this book analyze more than a decade of media coverage, along with three prominent films, to unpack how media discourse resurrects CTE, a preventable degenerative brain disease linked to boxing in 1928, and subsequently frames it as a football epidemic dating back to 2005. The authors position CTE as a public health crisis, whereby media coverage of CTE and the NFL’s vigorous reliance on controversial published research by the Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI) Committee parallels the moral panic of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and Big Tobacco’s manufacturing of doubt through faulty science. This book argues that the continued aspiration and idolization of the NFL, and its lack of accountability for health concerns surrounding brain injuries, highlight the firm grasp of hegemonic masculinity on the ideology of American football - further problematizing media’s glorification of the sport. Scholars of sports media, health communication, and general media studies will find this book particularly useful to discuss longitudinal effects of media framing centered on critical health risks in sport and the challenge of translating accurate scientific knowledge to the public domain.

“What if I played football?” I ask. As soon as it’s out of my mouth, I feel stupid. Even suggesting it feels like I’ve overstepped some kind of invisible line we’ve all agreed not to discuss. We don’t talk about how Mara is different from other girls. We don’t talk about how Mara is gay but no one says so. But when I do stuff like this, I worry it gets harder for us all to ignore what’s right in front of us. I direct my gaze to Quinn. “What do you think?” “I think it’s frickin’ genius,” he says. After getting kicked off the basketball team for a fight that was absolutely totally not her fault (okay maybe a little her fault), Mara is dying to find a new sport to play to prove to her coach that she can be a team player. A lifelong football fan, Mara decides to hit the gridiron with her brother, Noah, and best friend, Quinn?and she turns out to be a natural. But joining the team sets off a chain of events in her small Oregon town?and within her family?that she never could have predicted. Inspired by what they see as Mara’s political statement, four other girls join the team. Now Mara’s lumped in as one of the girls?one of the girls who can’t throw, can’t kick, and doesn’t know a fullback from a linebacker. Complicating matters is the fact that Valentina, Mara’s crush, is one of the new players, as is Carly, Mara’s nemesis?the girl Mara fought with when she was kicked off the basketball team. What results is a coming-of-age story that is at once tear-jerking and funny, thought-provoking and real, as Mara’s preconceived notions about gender, sports, sexuality, and friendship are turned upside down. Britta Lundin's sophomore novel will give readers all the feels, and make them stand up and cheer.

Originally published: New York: Harcourt Brace, 1994.

Football is so popular that Super Bowl Sunday is almost a national holiday. With engaging text and colorful photos, this book celebrates everything fans love about the sport, from the NFL to college football to youth leagues.

Reflections on Life, Love, and Events That Shape Them This book is a departure from the books I've published in the past, which are mostly on business history and processes and several collections of poetry. This book of essays combines reflections on my own life experiences with thoughts on subjects including a look at what I see happening in our country today, thoughts on God and religion, the life of Anne Frank and her continuing influence today, directions in medicine and treatment, and several other topics. It also looks at my background in sports and how it exposed me to a broad range of people and events that fueled my knowledge and experience to support this book.

A young athlete goes down. Our knees go weak. We hold our breath. The seconds stretch into minutes, but finally the athlete rises. We cheer. The athlete rubs their head, then bravely plays on. We breathe again. No damage done. Or so we think. How familiar is this sight to parents and families around the country? How many times a week does this take place? Sports related injuries, suffered by child athletes, often go unreported and undiagnosed. Here in Youth Contact Sports And Broken Brains, Bruce Parkman, tells the story of his athletic son, Mac Parkman, and how his repetitive exposure to concussive/subconcussive trauma caused him to silently suffer with depression, schizophrenia, and suicidality, before taking his life at the age of 17. Sports have a long history in society and the discussion of these issues may seem an unwelcome cultural shift, but in Youth Contact Sports And Broken Brains Bruce Parkman takes a logical and scientific approach to linking mental illness with concussive/subconcussive trauma suffered by young athletes in contact sports. Mac’s story and the family's vulnerability are powerful and followed by undeniable science. Youth Contact Sports And Broken Brains breaks down the science of brain development, repetitive brain trauma, and their links to mental illness while giving parents the information they need to keep their children safe when participating in contact sports. It is important to know: The human brain is not designed to handle repetitive trauma! Concussive/subconcussive trauma cannot be prevented by wearing helmets or pads. The exposure of a developing brain to subconcussive and concussive trauma can cause significant impact to the brain’s structure which over time can lead to cognitive and behavioral challenges, including mental illness. Repeated episodes of concussive/subconcussive trauma can cause significant changes to the structure and function of the brain in a condition known as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). Every child that plays a contact sport will suffer subconcussive trauma at every practice and game. Any damage done to the brain cannot be accurately assessed and its impacts will not be seen for years or decades after being damaged. There are forms of non-contact sports and numerous athletic activities for kids to enjoy…let them be kids! This book and The Mac Parkman Foundation was formed out of the loss of a great young man to suicide at the age of 17 after struggling with mental illness caused by prolonged exposure to concussive and subconcussive trauma from contact sports at a young age. Proceeds from this book will directly fund research and education on the links between concussive/subconcussive trauma and mental health surrounding contact sports and youth athletes.