D.J. is neither the most popular, nor the most attractive teenage girl at her high school in the small town of Red Bend, Wisconsin. She lives on a farm with her brother Curtis, who rarely speaks; her mom, who is constantly stressed; and her dad, with whom D.J. cannot seem to get along. Since her family is without much money, D.J.’s only hope toward a future in college is by receiving an athletic scholarship. The possibility of attending college is diminished when D.J. has to quit volleyball and basketball while her father copes with a hip injury and refuses to get surgery. Resulting in D.J. and Curtis taking on the full responsibility of managing the farm. Through all the ups and downs of the year, a lot is spoken of D.J.’s experiences. D.J. learns a lot about the people in her life.
Catherine Gilbert Murdock writes this novel, the life of a 16-year-old girl on a farm and her discombobulated thought processes from a humorous perspective, and shows sensitivity while D.J. discusses her problems. D.J. never lies, she is straightforward, and very detail-oriented, almost to a fault.
Family issues are constantly occurring. Win and Bill, D.J.’s two older brothers who were star football players at Red Bend High School, refuse to call the house as a result of one argument. Moreover, D.J. is practically failing her English class, has problems with her only close friend Amber, and is informed that she must begin training Hawley High School’s backup quarterback, Brian Nelson, whose lifestyle is much different than D.J.’s. Brian lives in a more upper-end, modern house, is better looking, very popular with the ladies, and of course athletic. He is just as unhappy to train with D.J. as she is to work with him, but the hatred between the two teens begins to fade as the bonding and training grows.

The day Brian first rolled up to the Schwenk’s family farm was totally out of the blue. To say the least, D.J. was not satisfied. “I was just about as angry as I’ve ever been” (8).  Quitting on the first day, Brian was sent back immediately after his head coach Jimmy Ott discovered his behavior towards the Schwenk’s. When he returns back to training, D.J. begins to see the positive sides in Brian shortly after the training becomes more frequent. “Then it hit me. A day before-even an hour before- I would have paid money to see Brian Nelson perish of thirst. And here I was giving him a pop”(55). Working out over the summer, they train with each other everyday. Soon enough, D.J. finds herself developing some romantic feelings towards Brian.
         
Murdock’s style of presenting the story gives the impression to you that you are present with the characters on the farm in the same atmosphere as D.J, discovering the different secrets hidden from the characters with unusual twists you were not expecting. More into the story, D.J. bases training with the knowledge she learned from her brothers about football, D.J. becomes quite fond of the sport, and feels that since it is the “different” thing to do, she should go out for the football team. “Everyone I looked at, their whole lives, did exactly what they were suppose to do without questioning it, without even wondering if they could do something different” (132). Afraid of what people might think of the idea, D.J. decides to keep the secret to herself. But could it ruin the relationship between Brian and herself? And not only jeopardize her relationship with Brian, but her family, and peers? Not too pleased with the way D.J. is currently handling her life is her best friend Amber. Amber thinks the whole situation with D.J. training Brian Nelson is ridiculous. To make matters worse, Amber pulls up to the farm, and her first sight is D.J. and Brian Nelson, horsing around with the water hose, with Brian shirtless and D.J. in a sports bra. Amber, furious, keeps repeating to D.J. that Brian is way out of her league and is just using her. “For your information, guys like that don’t go out with girls like you” (159).
          
I would definitely recommend this book to any young adult who is looking for a novel that includes some best-friend romance and humorous jokes being told through it all. After the peaking point, around halfway, I couldn’t take my eyes off the book, constantly curious to see what was going to happen on the upcoming page. D.J’s voice draws you into the story, prompting you to turn the page and read on, until satisfied with the ending result of how it all plays out. (825 words).