Final Season

Sixth-grader Ben Redd is the star quarterback for his middle school football team in Skaneateles, New York. Coached by his father and his two older brothers, Rich and Raymond, Ben wants to lead his team to a championship over their rival school in Penn Yan. 

However, Ben’s life is completely changed when his father is diagnosed with ALS, a neurodegenerative disease that affects the nerves and spinal cord. After his dad’s diagnosis, which connected to all those hard hits and tackles he took on the field, Ben’s mom becomes more determined than ever to get Ben to quit football. As his father’s condition worsens, Ben is struck with fear, anger, and despair at his circumstances. Will Ben learn to accept these changes with the championship on the line? Or will this be his final season in the sport? 

Ben is the exciting young protagonist of the story. His kind personality, love for others, and determination to succeed in the face of adversity make him an admirable character. Ben also displays a mature attitude toward his reality, acknowledging that bad things, like ALS, can and will happen in life. His wrestling with these unfortunate truths will feel relatable and authentic to readers, especially those who have gone through tough times in their own lives. 

Final Season’s main theme—the importance of love and family—explores Ben’s love for his father and how his family handles his father’s deteriorating condition. Although Ben and his family love football, they recognize that their love for each other is far more important than fame and glory. Even with the championship game on the line, Ben tells his father, “I love you too, Dad,” before heading into the big game. Other themes include leading others with love and treating them with respect. 

Throughout the book, Ben develops from someone who sees football as the greatest goal in life to someone who values the importance of love and family. Many supporting characters, such as his brothers and the lone girl on the football team, Thea, encourage this outlook on life. Of course, there’s also plenty of football action throughout the book. The story features multiple, in-depth action scenes of football games. For example, “[Ben] took the snap, rolled high, and hit Damon on a corner route.” Although some details can be too technical for non-football enthusiasts, the fast-paced action will keep readers engaged nonetheless. 

Overall, Final Season tells the powerful story of Ben’s life as a rising leader of his football team and as a loving son to his sickly father. Although the book explores the topic of ALS, which might be difficult for some readers, it offers a reassuring message that love will overcome these struggles. And while the explosive football scenes are enjoyable, the heart of the story lies in Ben’s interactions with his family—and more importantly—with his dad. Final Season is more than a story about football; it’s about love, family, and cherishing one’s time in life. 

Sexual Content 

• None 

Violence 

• Ben and his friends throw rotten eggs at Mrs. Wimple’s house; he is a well-known grouch who hands out detentions at their middle school. The boys explain, “We want to hit the windows if we can, but don’t worry if you miss. Either way, the Wimp and the Weirdo are gonna have a lot of stink on their hands.” 
• Ben talks about CTE, or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, and remembers that “a college teammate and friend of their father’s had killed himself because of” CTE. 
• On a boating trip, Ben’s boat encounters rough waves and Ben’s father “collapsed” and “[hit] his head on the corner of the windshield and [collapsed] on the floor.” When he stood up, “blood gushed from a cut in his scalp” and “[soaked] his gray polo shirt.” Ben’s father is okay and doesn’t need medical attention. 
• Thea, a girl on Ben’s football team, knocks Damon, another football player, “down like a bowling pin. Damon stayed down, moaning and thrashing and holding his right knee.” He returns to his feet after a few moments. 
• Ben’s father falls out of his SUV, hits his face, and “blood gushed from his nose, spattering [Ben’s] older brothers’ bare arms with fat red dots.” Ben’s father is helped back to his feet and requires no medical attention. 
• Ben’s teammate, Woody, and the rest of the football team play a prank on Thea by cutting off one of her braids. Before Ben can  stop Woody, he approaches Woody and sees “scissors used to cut small branches and stems” and “half of one of Thea’s blonde braids” in Woody’s hand. 
• During the championship game, Ben breaks his pinkie finger when a big brute slams him out of bounds. His finger was “snapped in half, and the top half hung limp at a ninety-degree angle.” Ben receives medication attention and is okay. 

Drugs and Alcohol 

• During a trip to the lake, Ben sees his father holding “one of those unusual-sounding German beers.”  
• During dinner, Ben’s father has “a glass of wine with his mom.”  
• Ben’s father took a “sip of red wine” during dinner at home. 
• Before his big football game, Ben thinks about using “sleeping pills” to fall asleep. 

Language 

• Ben calls multiple people idiots. 
• Ben calls his friend Woody a “stinky egg” because of Woody’s rambunctious attitude. 
• Ben’s mother repeatedly utters “oh my God” during incidents of fear, especially toward her husband’s worsening condition. 
• There is some name calling including jerk, string bean, and stupid.  
• When she sees that another teammate has shaved his head, Thea utters “Gosh.”  
• When Ben breaks his pinkie finger, he says, “It hurts like heck.” 

Supernatural 

• None 

Spiritual Content 

• One night at dinner, Ben blesses his family’s food by saying, “Dear God, thank you for this food, thank you for this family, and thank you for our . . . our . . . our good health. Amen.” 
• Ben and his dad attend church and “opened a hymn, held it between them, and pointed to the words as he croaked out the hymn.” 
• When Ben asks his dad why his brothers don’t go to church, his dad replies, “Jesus said, ‘Judge not, lest ye be judged.’” They then talk about loving God and others because “Jesus only asked us to do two things, love God and love our neighbors as we love ourselves.” 
• When Ben’s father is interviewed by 60 Minutes, he tells them he’s never been happier because of his “faith and my family around me. I’m blessed.” 
• When Thea learns that Ben’s father is in the hospital, she tells Ben that “[she’s] praying for him.” 
• When Raymond, one of Ben’s older brothers, asks his mom what he could do to help his father, his mom replies that they “could maybe pray.”