The Perfect Shot

by Elaine Marie Alphin

Book Overview

Someone murdered Brian's girfriend, Amanda. The police think it was her father. Brian isn't so sure. But everyone he knows is telling him to move on, get over it, focus on the present. Focus on basketball. Focus on hitting the perfect shot. Brian hopes that the system will work for Amanda and her father. An innocent man couldn't be wrongly convicted, could he?

But then Brian does a school project on Leo Frank, a Jewish man lynched decades...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0761381384
• ISBN13: 9780761381389
• Release Date: August 2011
• Publisher: Carolrhoda Lab (R)
• Length: 360 Pages
• Weight: 1.04 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.4" x 8.2"
• Age Range: 11 to 18 years
• Grade Range: Grade 6 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

Brian's Shot

I must admit, I had not heard of this book before it appeared during a search for YA novels. The jacket sounded interesting, so I ordered it. I usually have stacks of books to read and this would have taken its place on the bottom. But something grabbed my attention as I read the flap once again: Alphin was not just telling the story of one young man's struggle to fit in, be a hero, and win the girl - like so many stacks of YA's. She was rambling through the back roads of lives and history, picking at scabs, and scars, and bones, unraveling tales and mysterious happenings through decades of lies, cover-ups, and misdeeds. I am always in the mood for a read that can't be put down - and this one is one of those! Its genuine, and brings all of us back to the place where "but for the grace of God go I." Where we need to understand that things are still not right in our world. Discrimination. What shame we still carry on our backs. I found a strong, daring, defiant young man in Brian. I would have wanted him for my son, my friend. He reminds me of a line from Ted Kennedy's eulogy for his slain brother, Robert, "He saw wrong and tried to right it." That is Brian. He wouldn't walk away. He couldn't walk away.

Great Book

The novel, The Perfect Shot, by Elaine Marie Alphin, is probably the best book I have ever read. It is basically about a teenager named Brian Hammek. He was outside playing basketball, and he watches his girlfriend get murdered. He loves to play basketball. One day he went to court to try to set his girlfriend's father free, he was kicked out of the courtroom and he hid in the bathroom and was threatened by his girlfriend's murderer. After a game he was up in his room when the murderer broke into his house and tried to kill him. He made the perfect shot on the murderer and saved his family's lives. I think the pace of this book was different than you would find in other books. It starts out fast, but then it slows down. In the end it speeds back up again. If you like thrillers, than this is a book you need to read. You never what is going to happened. That is a quick review of The Perfect Shot.

Wonderfully Excellent

I saw this book in the bookstore and read the inside cover and thought it sounded very good. But I didn't get to read it for a few months, so I let my camp friend borrow it, and when he finished it in a few weeks, he said it was a very great book. The story is well played out, and the characters are very great. I loved the mystery within it all, and the sadness throughout. This is a wonderful teen book that is quite amazing, and every teen who enjoys sports books or mystery books should buy this, because it's very entertaining.

This Author Deserves More Recognition

I read this book based on a student recommendation. What a welcome surprise. This author deserves much more recognition for her talent. I look at and read Young Adult books all the time, but I knew nothing of this book. The Perfect Shot is a wonderful look at teen life and the struggles human beings go through when dealing with a loss. This book is also an experienced look at the struggles young adults go through when trying to figure out what their place is in this world. The book does all of the above and accelerates the plot with a suspenseful ending that will leave the reader wanting to read whatever this author produces. This book is a gem of a Young Adult book. This is a definite must-read. I am now going to backtrack and read this author's other books, one of which is an Edgar Award winner.

THE BEST BOOK EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I loved this book so much! I dont see how anyone couldn't. i read it for fun and it turned out to teach me a lot about love and about law. I can understand things more clearly by relating experiences to experiences of the characters. their lives are magnificently changing and understandable. i would reccomend this book to people who love teen murder mysteries and amazing pieces of writing that touch your heart. this book made me feel, it made me cry, it made me laugh. this book is about life and understanding the situation. the characters' struggles are real and exciting. this book is amazing. I couldnt put this book down, but at some parts i had to, this story is very intense and that made it all the more lovely. the murder of one boy's girlfriend turns into a path to life discovery, a path that leads to the meaning of everything. read this book and follow young Brian, go down the path with him. you will discover too.