

Yes, Diary, we still do puzzles together. So he could have quiet for concentration when we picked at our puzzles after work. Told me to fold it up in you, so he could get some peace. When I was a little kid and was all yelly-yelly and Darryl wanted me to be more hushy-hushy, he gave me you and told me to put the noise on your pages whenever I felt like I needed to, which was all the time except for when I was running or sleeping. But as he practices for this new event, can he let go of everything that’s been eating him up inside? ExcerptĪurelia asked me how long it’s been since I’ve spoken to you. Then, in a stroke of genius only Jason Reynolds can conceive, Sunny discovers a track event that encompasses the hard beats of hip-hop, the precision of ballet, and the showmanship of dance as a whole: the discus throw. But you also can’t be on a track team and dance. But you can’t be on a track team and not run.

With his relationship with his dad now worse than ever, the last thing Sunny wants to do is leave the other newbies-his only friends-behind. But Sunny doesn’t like running, never has. It seems the only thing Sunny can do right in his dad’s eyes is win first place ribbons running the mile, just like his mom did. His mother died giving birth to him, and based on how Sunny’s dad treats him-ignoring him, making Sunny call him Darryl, never “Dad”-it’s no wonder Sunny thinks he’s to blame. Or at least he thinks of himself that way. But his life hasn’t always been sun beamy-bright. Always ready with a goofy smile and something nice to say, Sunny is the chillest dude on the Defenders team. Sunny is the main character in this novel, the third of four books in Jason Reynold’s electrifying middle grade series. They all have a lot to lose, but they all have a lot to prove, not only to each other, but to themselves. But they are also four kids chosen for an elite middle school track team-a team that could take them to the state championships. Four kids from wildly different backgrounds, with personalities that are explosive when they clash.
SUNNY BOOK JASON REYNOLDS SERIES
Sunny tries to shine despite his troubled past in this third novel in the critically acclaimed Track series from National Book Award finalist Jason Reynolds.
