Fast Pitch

Author Nic Stone

Grades 6-8 Ages 8-12

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Nic Stone comes a challenging and heartwarming coming-of-age story about a softball player looking to prove herself on and off the field.

Shenice Lockwood, captain of the Fulton Firebirds, is hyper-focused when she steps up to the plate. Nothing can stop her from leading her team to the U12 fast-pitch softball regional championship. But life has thrown some curveballs her way.
 
Strike one: As the sole team of all-brown faces, Shenice and the Firebirds have to work twice as hard to prove that Black girls belong at bat.
 
Strike two: Shenice’s focus gets shaken when her great-uncle Jack reveals that a career-ending—and family-name-ruining—crime may have been a setup.
 
Strike three: Broken focus means mistakes on the field. And Shenice’s teammates are beginning to wonder if she’s captain-qualified.
 
It's up to Shenice to discover the truth about her family’s past—and fast—before secrets take the Firebirds out of the game forever.
 
“Sports, suspense, mystery, history... What more could you want? A funny, charming page-turner.” –Adam Gidwitz, New York Times bestselling author

Available Formats

Trade Paperback 9781984893048
Hardcover 9781984893017
eBook 9781984893031
Unabridged Audiobook Download 9780593413760

State Awards

Arizona

2024, Arizona Grand Canyon Reader Award, Nominee

Kansas

2023-2024, William Allen White Children’s Book Award, Nominee

Mississippi

2023, Magnolia Book Award, Nominee

South Carolina

2023-2024, South Carolina Book Awards, Selection

South Dakota

2022-2023, South Dakota Teen Choice Awards, Nominee

Tennessee

2022-2023, Volunteer State Book Award, Nominee

Virginia

2023-2024, Virginia Reader’s Choice Award, Nominee

Featured In

Nic Stone

author of Dear Manny

Random House Children's Books Teachers and Librarians