Murdock, Catherine Gilbert. The Off Season. Boston, Houghton Mifflin, 2007. 277.

¨But I guess he never learned that kind of toughness, like how to stand up to your so-called friends, and how to defend those people who really are your friends even if they're unpopular or poor or the wrong size.¨ Catherine Gilbert Murdock gives you a glimpse into what it's like to be a teen in times like today, in the book The Off Season. Life for D.J. Schwenk is looking pretty good going into her junior year in Red Bend, Wisconsin. She plays linebacker for her school's football team, which you could imagine, she has to be pretty big to be playing that position. During the summer, she helped Brian Nelson, a rich, popular, quarterback of Hawley's High School, get ready for the football season. In return, he helped D.J.´s dad and her around their farm. Brian kept helping D.J. even when school started which made their relationship heat up. As school goes on, relationships start getting rocky with her best friend Amber, Brian, and her family. Facing her future and money problems someone needs to step up to help. As time goes by, D.J. starts to realize how strong she is and what she is truly capable of.

I love the way Murdock keeps you guessing what else could possibly happen and always has you wanting to read more. As a realistic fiction novel, it relates to many of the situations that people get into today and what some families go through. This dramatic novel was also written in 1st person point-of-view which shows you how D.J., the main character, acts and feels about the difficult situations she gets put in. I loved this book; every time I flipped the page it just got more and more interesting. I would recommend it to all teens and adults! This book gives you a glimpse into what it's like to be a teen and the struggles families go through in times like today.