Taking Sides

Taking Sides

by Gary Soto

Genre: Juvenile Fiction

Synopsis: Lincoln Mendoza is brown, not white.  Moving from the barrio to the tree-lined streets of the suburbs won't change that.  Tony Contreras is still his main man, and he's still loyal to his team at Franklin Junior High, even though he's playing basketball for Columbus now.  But when Franklin and Columbus are scheduled to face each other in a league game, Lincoln is worried-how can he play his best with his white friends at his new school, decked out in Air Jordans, against his old buddies in their worn-out sneakers?

When the day of the game arrives, Lincoln's own internal conflict is as intense as the battle between the two teams.  But when the game is over, Lincoln has learned something about winning-and about loyalty, about change, and about friendship.

from the book jacket

Review:  This book was published in 1991 and the language, mainly slang, in this book shows its age.  I think that kids could relate to the story about a boy who is able to move out of barrio but Lincoln seems to have moved straight into a very wealthy suburb which is less realistic.  The conflict of not knowing who to be loyal to is also relate-able but the terminology used is just too 90s (i.e. talking about Montgomery Wards!)  There is somewhat mature topics such as Lincoln having an ex-girlfriend and liking a new girl at school, theft, and fighting which makes this book a solid junior high book in my mind.

Rating: 3 stars