Home Ground

LoveReading4Kids Says

May 2018 Book of the Month | Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 8

Alan Gibbons can pack a great deal of story and power into a short extent and that’s certainly the case with this book. It stars a group of young footballers, two of whom – the most talented – are refugees, only recently invited to play with West Team Celtic.  Our main character, Sam, is happy to accept them into the squad but a boy called Jordan resents anyone who is better than him, and does his best to keep them out of the team.

The drama of the matches is broken up and balanced via short chapters explaining who refugees are, where they come from, and why – something that makes the book much more than just a sports adventure. For the the final scene, everything comes together and there’s a wonderful demonstration of sport’s ability to unite us all, and even, occasionally, to work miracles. 

Particularly suitable for struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers aged 8+

Reviewed by Andrea Reece
Andrea Reece has spent almost her entire working life in children’s books, first as publisher, latterly as consultant, project manager and critic.
More reviews by Andrea Reece

About Home Ground

Sam's team are edging closer to the bottom of the league this season and team captain Jordan's bad attitude isn't helping anyone. When Sam spots Hasan playing on the refugee team, he can see that Hasan's got talent and invites him along to practice. Hasan and his friend Faisal prove to be exactly what the team need - but Jordan's not going to accept his new teammates so easily. Can Sam get the boys to pull together and win?

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