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A Coach, a Team, and the Game That Brought a Divided Town Together
by Amy Bass
In the tradition of Friday Night Lights and Outcasts United, One Goal tells the inspiring story of the soccer team in a town bristling with racial tension that united Somali refugees and multi-generation Mainers in their quest for state - and ultimately national - glory.
When thousands of Somali refugees resettled in Lewiston, Maine, a struggling, overwhelmingly white town, longtime residents grew uneasy. Then the mayor wrote a letter asking Somalis to stop coming, which became a national story. While scandal threatened to subsume the town, its high school's soccer coach integrated Somali kids onto his team, and their passion began to heal old wounds. Taking readers behind the tumult of this controversial team - and onto the pitch where the teammates vied to become state champions and achieved a vital sense of understanding - One Goal is a timely story about overcoming the prejudices that divide us.
"Starred Review. An edifying and adrenaline-charged tale of how immigrant soccer players were able to translate 'tight-knit family and community connection to success on the field.'" - Kirkus
"Bass's effective portrayal of Lewiston as a microcosm of America's changing culture should be required reading for coaches, teachers, and those working with diverse populations." - Publishers Weekly
"A heartening example of sport's ability to bring people together...Engrossing and informative." - Booklist
"A touching account that is highly recommended for all readers." - Library Journal
"Amy Bass tells a story that encompasses many of the things people love about sports, but also epitomizes many of the reasons sports matter." - Bob Costas
"This is not just a great story, deftly reported and unflinchingly told. It's not just a story of one obscure high school season. It's the American story, just when you feared that it might be fading fast, renewed." - S.L. Price, Sports Illustrated Senior Writer and author of Playing Through The Whistle: Steel, Football and an American Town
"At a time when America seems consumed by divisiveness and hate, along comes One Goal, a beautiful and important reminder that humanity's strength is its togetherness...A true gem of a book." - Jeff Pearlman, New York Times bestselling author of The Bad Guys Won and Gunslinger
"One Goal has made me feel optimistic about the country I live in. The vibrant, colorful and courageous characters will make you smile...it illustrates how powerful and transcendent teamwork and community can be." - Mary Carillo, analyst, NBC Sports
"Wondrous....It's a relevant tale in today's political climate, where fear and bigotry can be conquered by inclusion, understanding, and the beautiful game." - Shireen Ahmed, co-host of the Burn It All Down podcast
"Bass captures the essence of this unlikely band of brothers perfectly. This isn't a story about a soccer team...More than anything, this is a story of hope. The hope that brought thousands of Africans to a remote corner of the America in search of a better life. The hope that made a city finally open its arms to the children of those immigrants. The hope that our future still might be better than our past." - Tom Caron, anchor, New England Sports Network
This information about One Goal was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
A professor of history in New York, Amy Bass lived in Lewiston, Maine for four years as a student at Bates College. Her writing has appeared in Slate, Salon, and CNN Opinion, and her work for NBC's Olympics coverage earned her an Emmy in 2012 for Outstanding Live Event Turnaround. One Goal is her fourth book.
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