Keeper (Paul Faustino, #1)

it Was Darker Now, And The City Below Faustino's Office Was A Jazzy Dance Of Neon Signs And Traffic. The Big Man Went To The Window And Looked Down At It All, Spreading His Large Hands On The Glass. No, He Said. It Found Me. when Paul Faustino Of La Nacion Flips On His Tape Recorder For An Exclusive Interview With El Gato - The Phenomenal Goalkeeper Who Single-handedly Brought His Team The World Cup - The Seasoned Reporter Quickly Learns That This Will Be No Ordinary Story. Instead, The Legendary El Gato (the Cat) Quietly Narrates A Spellbinding Tale That Begins In A Mythic Corner Of The South American Rain Forest, Where A Ghostly But Very Real Mentor, The Keeper, Emerges To Teach The Gangly Boy The Most Thrilling Secrets Of The Game. Combining Vivid Imagery And Heart-stopping Action, This Evocative, Strikingly Ethereal Novel About Loyalty, Passion, And Magic Will Haunt Readers, Regardless Of Their Love For Soccer, Long After The Story Is Ended. an Enthralling Story Of A Poor And Gawky Kid Who Mysteriously Becomes The World's Greatest Goalkeeper - A Seamless Blend Of Magic Realism And Exhilarating Soccer Action. sharon Oliver - Children's Literature this Book, Part Sports Fiction, Part Fantasy And Part Fictional Biography Has An Interesting, If Specific, Draw To It. It Begins With The Interview Of El Gato, A Soccer Goalie Who Has Recently Won The World Cup. The Interviewer, Paul Faustino, Expects A Run-of-the-mill Interview With A World-class Soccer Player, But Gets Something Much More. El Gato Begins To Tell Paul Of His Childhood In The Jungles Of South America, Surprising The Interviewer With His Lack Of Interest In Soccer As A Young Boy. The Uncoordinated Young Boy Is Useless On His Village's Soccer Team And Finds Himself Spending His Time In The Jungle Instead Of Playing With The Village Boys. It Is Here, In A Mysterious Jungle Clearing That He Meets The Keeper, A Ghost-like Apparition Who Begins To Train El Gato To Be One Of The World's Greatest Soccer Goalkeepers. This Novel Has Mixed Appeal For Both Fans Of Soccer And Fans Of The Supernatural. At Times Some Of The Dialogue Feels A Bit Formal Or Stiff, But For The Most Part, This Is A Wonderful Story And An Easy Recommendation For Some Reluctant Male Readers. 2003, Candlewick Press, Ages 10 To 15. An enthralling story of a poor and gawky kid who mysteriously becomes the world's greatest goalkeeper #8212; a seamless blend of magic realism and exhilarating soccer action. "And you found it, this thing you were looking for?" It was darker now, and the city below Faustino's office was a jazzy dance of neon signs and traffic. The big man went to the window and looked down at it all, spreading his large hands on the glass. "No," he said. "It found me." When Paul Faustino of LA NACION flips on his tape recorder for an exclusive interview with El Gato #8212; the phenomenal goalkeeper who single-handedly brought his team the World Cup #8212; the seasoned reporter quickly learns that this will be no ordinary story. Instead, the legendary El Gato ("The Cat") quietly narrates a spellbinding tale that begins in a mythic corner of the South American rain forest, where a ghostly but very real mentor, the Keeper, emerges to teach the gangly boy the most thrilling secrets of the game. Combining vivid imagery and heart-stopping action, this evocative, strikingly ethereal novel about loyalty, passion, and magic will haunt readers, regardless of their love for soccer, long after the story is ended "This stirring adventure a soccer story? a ghost story? defies expectations. . . . Both lyrical and gripping." KIRKUS REVIEWS (starred review) When Paul Faustino of LA NACION flips on his tape recorder for an exclusive interview with El Gato the phenomenal goalkeeper who single-handedly brought his team the World Cup the seasoned reporter quickly learns that this will be no ordinary story. Instead, the legendary El Gato narrates a spellbinding tale that begins in the South American rainforest, where a ghostly but very real mentor, the Keeper, emerges to teach a poor, gawky boy the most thrilling secrets of the game. A seamless blend of magic realism and exhilarating soccer action, this evocative novel will haunt readers long after the story ends. An extraordinary novel, winner of the Branford Boase Award and the Bronze Nestle Children's Book Prize.Paul Faustino, South America's top sports writer, sits opposite the man they call El Gato – the Cat – the world's greatest goalkeeper. On the table between them stands the World Cup... In the hours that follow, El Gato tells his incredible story – how he, a poor logger's son, learns to become a World Cup-winning goalkeeper so good he is almost unbeatable. And the most remarkable part of this story is the man who teaches him – the mysterious Keeper, who haunts a football pitch at the heart of the claustrophobic forest... Paul Faustino learns about world-famous goalkeeper, El Gato's encounter with a mystical mentor named the Keeper, in the South American rain forest and the magical lessons he learned under his tutelage that helped him become the best in the world In an interview with a young journalist, World Cup hero, El Gato, describes his youth in the Brazilian rain forest and the events, experiences, and people that helped make him a great goalkeeper and renowned soccer star.