I'm a soccer mom right now, though I will eventually become a baseball mom. Now that I've read this book, I know a bit more of the sports world my son will soon inhabit.

We're introduced to the Base Stealers Club in the prequel of the same name. Ryan, Chevis, Dillion, Colby, and Shane, members of the Jonesville Chargers baseball team, band together to solve problems and mysteries surrounding their team. They formed the club when they solved the mystery of who was stealing money from their lockers during the regular season in The Base Stealers Club. The Case of the Missing Coach picks up the story as they get ready for the National Regional playoffs on their way to playing in the National Championship.

Case of the Missing Coach starts with the destruction of the team's equipment between the time they won the State Championship and their first practice for the National Regional. The Base Stealers Club works to raise funds to take their team to the playoffs, and while at the National Regional, they start receiving threatening notes and mysterious events start happening. Obviously, in the Case of the Missing Coach, a coach goes missing, but I can't tell you much more than that without giving away too many details.

This is a juvenile/young adult sports mystery geared towards age fourteen and under readers. Adults may find the level of detail in some of the scenes a bit much, but will still enjoy the story.

The kids learn inner strength as they face the doubts and challenges of playing in the playoffs itself, as well as handling the fears and uncertainties that the harassment creates. We see them continuing to do their best in the face of adversity. We see positive role models in the coaches and other grownups in the story, teaching and mentoring the team to help them process their fears and feelings. We even see some negative role models and how the kids respond to them.

The grownups in this story do a great job of guiding their charges through valuable life lessons-facing adversity, showing compassion, doing the best they can even under less than ideal situations, critical thinking, and most importantly, having fun.

Kids will like the story-baseball, playoffs, and adventure. Parents will appreciate the way V. Gilbert Zabel has presented some of the challenges of growing up and showing how to react with integrity, compassion, and perseverance. I can only hope that my son will have coaches and fellow players such as those found in the Case of the Missing Coach.

Reviewed by Susan
© September 2007