Off the Bench by Fred Bowen - Book Tour + Giveaway

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Off the Bench by Fred Bowen - Book Tour + Giveaway

By Jasmine J 9:00 AM book tour, Books, excerpt, giveaway, juvenile fiction, middle-grade

I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the OFF THE BENCH by Fred Bowen Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!

About The Book:

Title: OFF THE BENCH

Author: Fred Bowen

Pub. Date: March 28, 2023

Publisher: Peachtree

Formats: Hardcover, Paperback, eBook, audiobook

Pages: 144

Find it: Goodreads, https://books2read.com/OFF-THE-BENCH

Chris wants to be a star scorer like his brother—so why does his coach keep him waiting on the bench?

Chris comes from a sports-loving family. His brother is the star scorer on the high school team, and is being recruited by Division 3 colleges. Chris longs to earn the same adulation, and he’s a good scorer for his junior high team. But why won’t his coach start him? He’s better on defense than his rival, Carlos, and nearly as good a shooter.

Soon Chris becomes obsessed with earning a place in his team’s starting lineup. He does everything he can think of—including being an invaluable player every time he comes in. But nothing seems to get Coach’s attention. Even after he learns the history of the valuable “6th man,” Chris can’t seem to let it go. How will he ever be a big scoring star?

For every kid who hates to read but loves basketball, comes a suspenseful novel with plenty of play-by-play sports action.

EXCERPT
Excerpt from Off the Bench / Text copyright © 2023 by Fred Bowen. Reproduced with permission from Peachtree Publishing Company Inc. All rights reserved.

Chapter One Kris Hall felt the game before he saw the game.

He walked up the stairs to the Oak View High School gymnasium with his mother, father, and younger sister, Joni. The stairs almost trembled from the pounding feet on the floor above. The noise of the crowd swirled down the stairway. Kris could sense his heart beating faster. His father handed four tickets to a man sitting on a high stool near the double door at the entrance of the gym. “First game of the season!” Mr. Hall shouted to the man over the sound of the crowd. “Good to be back.”

The man nodded as he tore the tickets in half and handed the stubs to Mr. Hall. “They’ve got a chance to be pretty good this year. Especially with your son on the team.”

“I just hope they all have a fun season,” Kris’s mother chimed in. The family squeezed by several people standing around the entrance and stepped inside. The gym was almost full. The two teams—Oak View and Wilson High School—were warming up. Players and basketballs flashed around the polished floor. “There’s Dylan!” Joni shouted, pointing to the floor. Kris spied his older brother moving, passing, hustling. He looked every inch a real ballplayer. Six feet even and in great shape for his senior year. Dylan was all business before the game, eyes focused on the ball and the action on the floor, looking sharp in his white uniform with the black and orange trim. Number 14—his favorite number. Kris looked around at the people in the stands. Groups of parents, students, teachers, and people from the town huddled together along the rows of wooden bleachers. Their voices blended with the pounding basketballs and the squeaks of basketball shoes against the floor. A warm gym was a good place to be on a cold December Friday night in a small town.

About Fred Bowen:

Fred Bowen was a Little Leaguer who loved to read. Now he is the author of many action-packed books of sports fiction. He has also written a weekly sports column for kids in the Washington Post since 2000. Fred played lots of sports growing up, including soccer at Marblehead High School. For thirteen years, he coached kids’ baseball, soccer, and basketball teams. Some of his stories spring directly from his coaching experience and his sports-happy childhood in Marblehead, Massachusetts. Fred holds a degree in history from the University of Pennsylvania and a law degree from George Washington University. He was a lawyer for many years before retiring to become a full-time children’s author. Bowen has been a guest author at schools and conferences across the country, as well as the National Book Festival in Washington, DC, and the Baseball Hall of Fame. Fred lives in Silver Spring, Maryland, with his wife. For more information, check out the author’s website at www.fredbowen.com.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive a finished copy of OFF THE BENCH, US Only.

Ends May 2^nd, midnight EST.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

4/17/2023	@hodophile_z	IG Review
4/17/2023	Mythical Books	Excerpt/IG Post
4/18/2023	YA Books Central	Excerpt/IG Post
4/18/2023	Two Chicks on Books	Excerpt/IG Post
4/19/2023	A Backwards Story	Excerpt/IG Post
4/19/2023	Rajiv's Reviews	Review/IG Post
4/20/2023	#BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog	Excerpt/IG Post
4/20/2023	Cara North	Excerpt/IG Post
4/21/2023	OneMoreExclamation	Review/IG Post
4/21/2023	Jazzy Book Reviews	Excerpt/IG Post

Week Two:

4/24/2023	The Real World According To Sam	Review/IG Post
4/24/2023	Books and Kats	Excerpt/IG Post
4/25/2023	Country Mamas With Kids	Review/IG Post
4/25/2023	Texan Girl Readz	Review/IG Post
4/26/2023	@evergirl200	IG Review
4/26/2023	The Momma Spot	Review
4/27/2023	A Blue Box Full of Books	IG Review/LFL Drop Pic
4/27/2023	@carlysunshinebooks	IG Review/LFL Drop Pic
4/28/2023	Review Thick And Thin	Review/IG Post
4/28/2023	More Books Please blog	Review/IG Post

book tour, Books, excerpt, giveaway, juvenile fiction, middle-grade

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