Sports Illustrated Kids Graphic Novels: Spotlight Striker - Softcover

Carlos Ramirez has always been the Strikers' best scorer. He pulls off bicycle kicks with ease, and his best friend, Tou Yang, knows exactly where to put the passes. But the state's best team, the Bandits, are coming to town, and Carlos hears that he'll have a very special fan in the stands. His uncle, a professional soccer player, will be watching his nephew's every move during the Strikers' biggest game of the year. As the pressure to perform sets in, Carlos struggles to even hit the ball, let alone do bicycle kicks. Everyone has seen that Carlos is a gifted athlete, but no one knows whether he'll shine as the centre of attention, or be blinded by the spotlight.

Blake A. Hoena grew up in central Wisconsin, where, in his youth, he wrote stories about robots conquering the Moon and trolls lumbering around in the woods behind his parent's house - and the fact that the trolls were hunting for little boys had nothing to do with Blake's pesky younger brothers. Later, he moved to Minnesota to pursue a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing from Minnesota State University, Mankato. Since graduating, Blake has written more than forty books for children, including retellings of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and the Perseus and Medusa myth. Most recently, he's working on graphic novels for Sports Illustrated Kids and writing stories about superheroes. Gerardo Sandoval is a professional comic book illustrator from Mexico. He has worked on many well-known comics including Tomb Raider books from Top Cow Production. He has also worked on designs for posters and card sets. Benny Fuentes lives in Villahermosa, Tabasco in Mexico, where the temperature is just as hot as the sauce. He studied graphic design in college, but now he works as a full-time colorist in the comic book and graphic novel industry for companies like Marvel, DC Comics, and Top Cow Productions. He shares his home with two crazy cats, Chelo and Kitty, who act like they own the place.