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A review by thebooknerdscorner
Pop by Gordon Korman
5.0
Korman pens a story about a junior football player named Marcus and his unlikely friendship with a retired NFL player.
Marcus has just moved to a new town and he's finding it difficult to make friends over the summer. That is, until he meets Charlie, an eccentric middle-age man with an enthusiasm for tackling and hearing the "pop." Unbeknownst to Marcus, Charlie has some secrets and these secrets end up getting Marcus in a bit of trouble. When Marcus learns Charlie's secret, Marcus is willing to go to great lengths to give Charlie the recognition that he deserves.
I was a bit hesitant about this one. Yes, I have loved most of Korman's books in the past, but this one is centered around sports, so I wary. Despite this, I found great enjoyment from the entire story. Charlie is a character filled to the brim with quirky Korman character vibes, and I just adored him despite his oddness. The fact that he loves pranks, football, and running around town as a fifty something year old is such a joy. Marcus was a likable protagonist from the get-go and I the fact that he rode around on a Vespa made me laugh. Some of his decisions were questionable, but I could always tell that his heart was in the right place.
This book is really hard to discuss without giving away most of the plot. I will say though, that this book tackles some great topics such as mental illness, standing up for what you believe is right, the idea of legacy, and the dangers of sports. The lengths that Marcus goes to help Charlie out is so precious and wholesome; it filled me with so much joy to read about their relationship.
The ending of this book made me feel so many emotions. Once again, I don't want to say too much, but the ending really came out of nowhere and yanked at my heartstrings. I thought this was going to be one of my least favorites of Korman's books, but I ended up really adoring the characters (except for Alyssa; she was creepy) and the messages presented in this one were so good.
Overall, I really enjoyed "Pop" for its eccentric characters, important messages, and rapid pace. This is the first of Korman's teen books that I've read and I think it's the oldest one that I've read thus far, but it still has a feel very similar to his more recent books. I would most definitely recommend checking this one out, especially if you are a sports fan. I'm not and I still loved it, so there is that.
Marcus has just moved to a new town and he's finding it difficult to make friends over the summer. That is, until he meets Charlie, an eccentric middle-age man with an enthusiasm for tackling and hearing the "pop." Unbeknownst to Marcus, Charlie has some secrets and these secrets end up getting Marcus in a bit of trouble. When Marcus learns Charlie's secret, Marcus is willing to go to great lengths to give Charlie the recognition that he deserves.
I was a bit hesitant about this one. Yes, I have loved most of Korman's books in the past, but this one is centered around sports, so I wary. Despite this, I found great enjoyment from the entire story. Charlie is a character filled to the brim with quirky Korman character vibes, and I just adored him despite his oddness. The fact that he loves pranks, football, and running around town as a fifty something year old is such a joy. Marcus was a likable protagonist from the get-go and I the fact that he rode around on a Vespa made me laugh. Some of his decisions were questionable, but I could always tell that his heart was in the right place.
This book is really hard to discuss without giving away most of the plot. I will say though, that this book tackles some great topics such as mental illness, standing up for what you believe is right, the idea of legacy, and the dangers of sports. The lengths that Marcus goes to help Charlie out is so precious and wholesome; it filled me with so much joy to read about their relationship.
The ending of this book made me feel so many emotions. Once again, I don't want to say too much, but the ending really came out of nowhere and yanked at my heartstrings. I thought this was going to be one of my least favorites of Korman's books, but I ended up really adoring the characters (except for Alyssa; she was creepy) and the messages presented in this one were so good.
Overall, I really enjoyed "Pop" for its eccentric characters, important messages, and rapid pace. This is the first of Korman's teen books that I've read and I think it's the oldest one that I've read thus far, but it still has a feel very similar to his more recent books. I would most definitely recommend checking this one out, especially if you are a sports fan. I'm not and I still loved it, so there is that.