The Rookie by Scott Siegler

The Rookie by Scott Siegler, Dark Overlord Paperback, 2012

            

             Scott Siegler’s novel, originally produced in podcast form, is a gripping work of speculative science fiction.  The story revolves around the protagonist Quentin Barnes who is a quarterback in a low tier interstellar football league.  In Siegler’s world, humanity is not the only intelligent species out there and football has been adopted by many planets as the sport of choice.  This changes the game completely since different species have different abilities that allow them to perform better than humans at certain positions.  Quentin Barnes is a citizen of a group of planets called The Purist Nation.  The Purists are a very xenophobic people who hate all nonhuman species simply because they are different from them.  Quentin Barnes is an incredible player who is traded to a team outside of the Purist Nation.  Quentin, having been raised in an all human environment where other species have been labeled demonic, struggles to adapt to and accept his new teammates.  Will Barnes be able to rise above his personal prejudices and his sheltered upbringing to fulfill his dream of playing football at the highest level?

          Siegler’s novel takes advantage of the futuristic setting to address issues of racism, homophobia, drugs, alcohol, and ethics.  He makes this expansive commentary palatable for the young reader by filling each chapter with intense action and drama.  Boys interested in sports will love this sports heavy novel.  Students interested in politics and social issues will also find this novel engaging.  At 464 pages this book’s easy prose makes it an easy read for most students.  I would definitely recommend this book for middle school students.  While science fiction is generally relegated to low culture, Siegler’s novel is chock-full of themes and character development.  One thing to be cautious of is the novels portrayal of religion which could upset some religious students and parents.