SLAM by Nick Hornby

Sam is a normal 15-year-old boy whose life has finally hit a great spot. He has a decent relationship with his single mom, his art teacher has encouraged him to go to college in graphic design, he has learned some great skateboarding moves, and he has a beautiful girlfriend. World-famous skateboarder Tony Hawk is Sam's hero and the source of his best advice, in the form of quotes from Hawk's autobiography, which Sam has read about a thousand times. But all it takes is one 5-minute slip in judgment, and his life is changed forever. He receives a slam against the wall, in a big way. When he finds out his girlfriend is pregnant, all he thinks about doing is running away, but in the end, Sam does the only thing he can do. He decides to be responsible and does some major growing up. Sam is a funny and oddly endearing character, and Hornby, an English author, has written a realistic novel about teenage fatherhood, and the importance of taking responsiblilty for our mistakes. Three of Nick Hornby's books have been made into major motion pictures. Find out more about him on his official website, http://www.nicksbooks.com/index.php/archives/category/news/. Read Slam, on this year's Tayshas list. --reviewed by Dail Sams