Now Is the Time for Running - Softcover

A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year (2011)An ALA Best Fiction Book for Young Adults (2012) Winner of the UKLA Award for ages 12-16 (2014)

"A harrowing tale of modern Zimbabwe... gripping, suspenseful and deeply compassionate."--Kirkus (starred review)

"There is plenty of material to captivate readers: fast-paced soccer matches every bit as tough as the players; the determination of Deo and his fellow refugees to survive unthinkably harsh conditions; and raw depictions of violence... But it's the tender relationship between Deo and Innocent, along with some heartbreaking twists of fate, that will endure in readers' minds."--PW (starred review)

"Williams tells his story simply and unflinchingly with depictions of tremendous violence, hard-fought soccer matches, and the loving bond between the brothers. Deo's narration provides an immediacy that is only compounded by the tale's fast pacing and suspense. The author gives readers complicated and compelling characters for whom they will cheer, cry with, and love."
--SLJ (starred review)

"Williams skillfully draws the plight of these refugee brothers with both suspense and sympathy, and readers cannot help but root for them in their quest to rebuild their broken lives... Williams joins Beverly Naidoo and Allan Stratton with this incisive portrait of sub-Saharan Africa, a compelling mix of suspense, sports, and social injustice."--Horn Book

"The story is fast-paced, gripping, heartbreaking, and hopeful."
--LMC

"A stunner... This book should be required reading for humanity."--Chris Crutcher, author of Deadline, Whale Talk, and Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes

"Now Is the Time For Running is as riveting as it is important, as heartbreaking as it is uplifting, and as sobering as it is thrilling. Michael Williams astounds us with the moral dilemmas facing southern Africa; he also buoys us with a realistic sense of hope and triumph. A must read." --Matthew Quick, author of Sorta Like a Rock Star and The Silver Linings Playbook

"We run with [Deo], our hearts in our mouths, to the very end... How lucky we are to get such a read!"--Donna Jo Napoli, author of The Wager and The Magic Circle

"A gripping page-turning, a tribute to the unifying power of sport, and a heart-stirring window into the life of a teen refugee in South Africa."--Mitali Perkins, author of Bamboo People and Secret Keeper

When soldiers attack their small village, Deo escapes with his older, mentally disabled brother, carrying a soccer ball filled with money, and after facing prejudice, poverty, and tragedy, it is in soccer that Deo finds hope.