This book takes place over the course of a week (August 26 - August 31) with pieces of the puzzle being revealed through Ethan's sessions with a therapist, the football team's group chat, newspaper articles, and dialogue between Teddy's family and his friends. I would offer this book to people who value a slow reveal, or feel comfortable thinking about the nuances of sports and what it means to form a community/at what costs. While not the most uplifting text, there are moments of joy and repentance, with multiple characters ultimately coming forward and owning their actions.
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This book reads from the perspective of incoming freshman Tommy Youngblood as he lies in a coma in the hospital recovering from a traumatic head injury. Doctors advise his family to talk to him as much as possible to help with his recovery, but to keep the conversation light, which they struggle to do in their grief as they also grapple with inconsistencies in the story of how he got injured at football camp.

I was really intrigued with the unique storytelling framework, as well as the poetic nature of Tommy’s thoughts. It's a page-turner; the story is very well-paced so that the reader is constantly discovering new layers of the story as it unfolds. This book provides a meaningful lesson about the consequences of hazing while successfully avoiding a moralistic tone. The children in the story, Tommy’s friends and teammates, push the adults in the story to grow beyond a black and white way of thinking about the situation. Those who enjoyed will be happy to know that the author also has other books focusing on different characters set within the same school universe! ( )

Teddy is in a coma from what appears to have been an accident during a preseason high school football practice. As an incoming freshman, Teddy along with his fellow freshman teammates participate in a game called the Rookie Rumble that is coached by the seniors on the football team. At the end of the game, Teddy passes out and is taken to the hospital. Teddy's entire family converges on the hospital, including his estranged mother, to speak to him and give him positive words of encouragement. In the meantime, online conversations and a therapist transcript with a player named Ethan hint at something more that may have happened during the Rookie Rumble.

Game Changer is told through online conversations, transcripts, and Teddy's thoughts. This format actually enhances the story because it precipitates opportunities for the reader to make inferences about what may have happened to Teddy. The characters are developed as their thoughts are outlined during these conversations. Real issues of violence in football as well as hazing are addressed in this book. My only complaint is that the ending seems a little to pat to be believable, but overall, Game Changer is a very well written book that deals with timely topics surrounding youth football. ( )

Good stuff, as always, from Tommy. I like the inventive format.

The beginning hit me really hard, when everyone was tying to talk to Teddy and be normal but you could feel the fear and pain and confusion. Unfortunately, the rest of the book didn't have the same emotional resonance.

I'm a sucker for multi-media books, and it makes the story fly by. (Why was everyone texting in ALL CAPS, though?) For such a sparse text I got a good understanding of everybody's relationships and characters.

Where I was a little let down was the discussion of concussions and the risks. Makes sense that everyone would assume that it's just an unfortunate accident, but even if that's all it was that should still be cause to cancel the season and do an investigation! And then we find out about the Hit Parade and the hazing and the book just... ends. I want to hear about the consequences! I want to know whether or not Coach Buzetti (or w/e) knew or not! I want the varsity players to be punished and to learn that hazing is not OK! The ending felt abrupt and unfinished.

Overall and quick and entertaining read; definitely recommended for middle school. ( )