Friday Night Lights: Football Fiction for Teens

Books about football for teen readers.
Updated September 19, 2022
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Friday night lights : a town, a team, and a dream
Bissinger, Buzz
Paper Book
Return once again to the timeless account of the Permian Panthers of Odessa--the winningest high-school football team in Texas history. Odessa is not known to be a town big on dreams, but the Panthers help keep the hopes and dreams of this small, dusty town going. Socially and racially divided,...
Knights of the Hill Country
Tim Tharp
Paper Book
In a small Oklahoma town, one star linebacker must decide what kind of man he wants to be--both on and off the field. Welcome to Kennisaw--where Friday night high school football ranks right up there with God and country, and sometimes even comes in first. This year, the Kennisaw Knights are going...
Inexcusable
Chris Lynch
Paper Book
I am a good guy. Keir Sarafian may not know much, but he knows himself. And the one thing he knows about himself is that he is a good guy. A guy who's a devoted son and brother, a loyal friend, and a reliable teammate. And maybe most important of all, a guy who understands that...
Fat Boy vs. the Cheerleaders
Geoff Herbach
Paper Book
From Geoff Herbach, the award-winning author of the hit young adult novels Stupid Fast and Nothing Special, comes a tale that will resonate with fat kids, nerds, dorks, gamers, geeks and teen outcasts of all kinds-an authentically funny story for anyone who has suffered from teasing and bullying at...
The Franchise (The Opportunity)
Patrick Jones
Paper Book
Latrell Baker's scientific approach to football--watching football--has finally paid off. Harmon Holt heard about the algorithm he developed for determining best defensive play, and now Latrell's landed himself an internship with the NFL's LA Stars. But he'll soon discover that working in pro...
Dairy Queen
Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Paper Book
When you don’t talk, there’s a lot of stuff that ends up not getting said. Harsh words indeed, from Brian Nelson of all people. But, D. J. can’t help admitting, maybe he’s right. When you don’t talk, there’s a lot of stuff that ends up...
Dare Me
Megan Abbott
Paper Book
From the award-winning author of The Turnout and Give Me Your Hand: the searing novel of friendship and betrayal that inspired the USA Network series, praised by Gillian Flynn as "Lord of the Flies set in a high-school cheerleading squad...Tense, dark, and...
Call Me By My Name
John Ed Bradley
Paper Book
"Heartbreaking." --Laurie Halse Anderson, acclaimed author of Speak "John Ed Bradley skillfully shines a beam of humanity through the prism of the game, revealing to us the full spectrum of its colors, from love to hate, bigotry to tolerance, and devotion to betrayal."...
Pop
Gordon Korman
Paper Book
Pop delivers suspense, humor, sports action, and a compelling look at the damage those "pop"s in football can cause Gordon Korman's books appeal to a wide range of kids and adults and can pull in even reluctant readers. Share Pop in your home or classroom; sports fans in particular won't...
The Off Season
Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Paper Book
Life is looking up for D.J. Schwenk. She's in eleventh grade, finally. After a rocky summer, she's reconnecting in a big way with her best friend, Amber. She's got kind of a thing going with Brian Nelson, who's cute and popular and smart but seems to like her anyway. And then there's the fact she...
Catching Jordan
Miranda Kenneally
Paper Book
Miranda Kenneally's first book in the beloved sports romance Hundred Oaks series! Love is the toughest game to play... Athletic superstar Jordan Woods is the captain and quarterback of her high school football team. Her teammates, including her best friend Sam, all see her as their leader...
No More Dead Dogs
Gordon Korman
Paper Book
For use in schools and libraries only. Truthful Wallace gives a thumbs-down to a book much to the chagrin of his English teacher, who sentences him to help with a stage version of the book. Wallace is unaware that his plot-improvement suggestions will wind up changing the entire production.
Stupid Fast
Geoff Herbach
Paper Book
ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults * YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults * 2011 Cybils Award Winner, Young Adult Fiction * Junior Library Guild Selection * ABA Best Books A moving yet hilarious coming-of-age teen comedy about a reluctant athlete just trying to make it through high school,...
Leverage
Joshua C. Cohen
Paper Book
A Top Ten Best Fiction Book for Young Adults as Selected by the American Library Association The football field is a battlefield There's an extraordinary price for victory at Oregrove High. It is paid on-and off-the football field. And it claims its victims...
Payback Time
Carl Deuker
Paper Book
Through the eyes of a distinctly non-athletic protagonist--a fat high school journalist named Mitch--veteran sports novelist Deuker reveals the surprising truth behind a mysterious football player named Angel.  When Angel shows up Lincoln High, he seems to have no past--or at least...
Gym Candy
Carl Deuker
Paper Book
"Look, Mick," he said, "you're going to find out from somebody in the gym, so you might as well find out from me. Those supplements you're taking? They might get you a little bigger, but just a little. If you're after serious results, there's other stuff that produces better results much faster...
Running Loose
Chris Crutcher
Paper Book
Louie Banks has the world by the tail. It's his last year in high school; he has wheels, a starting spot on the football team, good friends, and the girl of everyone's dreams. If he can stay away from Boomer Cowans long enough to graduate, he's got it made. But the world suddenly turns and...
Football Genius
Tim Green
Paper Book
New York Times bestselling author and former NFL player Tim Green scores a touchdown with this exhilarating and action-packed story about an ordinary boy who becomes a hero you can really root for. Perfect for fans of Mike Lupica. Twelve-year-old Troy White has a phenomenal gift: He can...
Jake, Reinvented
Gordon Korman
Paper Book
Korman reinvents The Great Gatsby for teens in this story about Jake Garret, the mysterious new student at Fitzgerald High. Told through the eyes of Jake's friend, readers get to know Jake and, eventually, his secret.
The League
Thatcher Heldring
Paper Book
The League "will keep sports fans reading" when all one boy wants is to play in a summer football league even though it's the roughest and most secretive rogue league in town (Kirkus Reviews). And don't miss Thatcher Heldring's newest novel, The Football Girl-...
The Walk On
John Feinstein
Paper Book
"Alex Myers is a triple-threat athlete great at football, basketball, and baseball. But he'll have to fight for a spot on the varsity team. Alex is a quarterback, but from the first day of football practice, it's clear that that position is very much filled by the coach's son, Matt. Alex has the...
The Football Girl
Thatcher Heldring
Paper Book
For every athlete or sports fanatic who knows she's just as good as the guys. This is for fans of The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen, Grace, Gold, and Glory by Gabrielle Douglass and Breakaway: Beyond the Goal by Alex Morgan.   The summer before...

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