Nice Garry: In a spin by Nathan Lyon and Michael Wagner

Nathan Lyon puts his name and face to this great new fiction cricket series written by Michael Wagner (Max Rumble, The Undys). In a Spin is the second in the series. The first, Bowled Over, introduced us to Garry, a ten-year-old with a special off-spin bowl that sees him start playing for the Youngstown Under-16s. Garry is a well-rounded character, full of nerves, on and off confidence and he makes mistakes that see him paralysed with embarassment. This vulnerability is what makes his experience during one of the first games of the cricket season so devastating. One of the kids on the opposing team thinks Garry calls him a 'loser' and to get revenge he posts a video of Garry getting hit by the ball three times during the match. Garry is shattered, vowing to quit cricket and actually following through for a short time. But he is surrounded by supportive family, friends and teammates who are fabulous in their ability to communicate with Garry, be understanding of his feelings but also encourage him to face back up to the team the next weekend. 

One of the big themes is forgiveness, with Garry's grandmother in particular, imparting lots of wisdom about who really loses out when we hold grudges, take revenge or refuse to forgive. These sorts of strategies for both life and cricket are woven throughout the story. Michael Wagner has done this really well with this series: just enough cricket talk as well as making Garry a relatable character and adding some real guts with some cyber-bullying content and plenty of emotional responses and challenges. The role-modeling of how we can deal with these meaningful issues both on and off the field is well-written,  helpful to those reading along but also remaning engaging and entertaining. A great series that will appeal to a large age-range and made more approachable due to a smattering of illustrations by David Williams.

Themes: Cricket, Fear, Forgiveness, Teamwork.

Nicole Nelson