The Off Season by Catherine Murdock

A couple of months ago I reviewed Dairy Queen by Catherine Murdock, by then I did know it had a sequel The Off Season and I liked the first book enough to read it. Well, I loved it.

D.J.'s life seemed to be reaching a happy note at the end of Dairy Queen as she was learning to speak her mind and was making her dream come true by joining the boy's football team, her brothers were speaking to their dad again and Brian Nelson -the hottie QB from the town next over - seemed to like her.

As The Off Season starts, it seems like good things are going to stick, D.J.'s is becoming friends with Dale, her best friend Amber's girlfriend, and Brian took her on a drive to Minneapolis - in what D.J. regards as the happiest day ever - and they end up making out; her brothers are making it big in college football and everything seems perfect... but soon things start to go sour.

D. J. discovers the family's farm is bleeding money out of the family, she gets injured during a football practice and has to face the fact that if she wants to get a basketball scholarship for college she can't keep playing football, Brian seems embarrassed to be seen with her and won't even acknowledge her in front of his friends, Amber and Dale decide to take off to Chicago, her brother Curtis is caught staying over night at his girlfriend's house. But then the worse thing happens: D.J. oldest brother Win is seriously injured during a game and might not walk again.

It seems like a lot of things are going on in the book, and they are, but they are handled skillfully and it does sound like real life: the struggles and the many problems as well as the small moments of great happiness; and through it all D.J.'s voice carries you through keeping you close to her and wanting her to do well.

I loved this book, more than I loved Dairy Queen and that was a good book. I cried, I cheered and, by the end, felt very hopeful. I love books that leave me hopeful

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