Knights of the Hill Country by Tim Tharp

So different than all of the vampire/angel/werewolf books or the spoiled brat city kid dramas out there. At just more than 200 pages (I read it in eBook format at 251 pgs) this is a quick read but with enough depth to make students weigh the price of friends over sticking up for what is right. This is a well-paced story that will appeal to guys and girls alike, although there might be more on-field action than non-football fans would like.

Hampton lets his friends do the talking for him, as well as the thinking in most cases- until Hampton realizes he's developing feelings for a very unpopular, nerdy girl named Sara, who helps him realize that his friends are pushing him around and getting him into situations he doesn't need to be in. For Blaine, it is everything, and he doesn't try to hide his jealousy when big-time colleges start talking to Hampton and not him. However, there is an undercurrent that's unsettling: For Hampton, football is just a game. His team has won every game for nearly five years, and his best friend Blaine is the star running back trying to grind out one more season on bad knees that he doesn't want anyone to know about. He can almost stop time to read a play, and he's definitely got size on his side: he's one of the biggest, meanest, most effective defensive tackles in a very competitive eastern Oklahoma high school conference. It's hard for him to pull together his thoughts to even participate in a class discussion, but on the football field everything clicks for him. Hampton Green isn't the sharpest stick in the knife drawer. This unforgettable novel is the story of a boy whose choices will decide the kind of man he becomes, and raises powerful questions about sportsmanship, loyalty, and the deceptiveness of legends. And meanwhile, his best friend and teammate Blaine-the true friend who first introduced Hampton to football back when he had nothing else-is becoming uncomfortably competitive, and he's demanding Hampton's loyalty even as Hampton thinks he's going too far. He's drawn to a smart, quirky girl at school-the type a star athlete just isn't supposed to associate with. His father walked out on him and his mom years ago, and now his mom has a new boyfriend every week.

But his life off the field is a different story. On the field, he's so in control you'd think he was able to stop time. This year, the Kennisaw Knights are going for their fifth straight undefeated season, and if they succeed, they'll be more than the best high school team in the eastern Oklahoma hill country-they'll be legends.īut the Knights' legacy is a heavy weight to carry for Hampton, linebacker and star of the team. Welcome to Kennisaw-where Friday night high school football ranks right up there with God and country, and sometimes even comes in first. In a small Oklahoma town, one star linebacker must decide what kind of man he wants to be-both on and off the field.

Knights of the Hill Country by Tim Tharp