Over the Line
By (Author) Tom Palmer
Cover design or artwork by Violet Tobacco
Illustrated by Ollie Cuthbertson
HarperCollins Publishers
Barrington Stoke Ltd
15th September 2020
28th May 2020
New Third edition
United Kingdom
Children
Fiction
Childrens / Teenage fiction: Historical fiction
Childrens / Teenage fiction: Sporting stories
823.92
Paperback
176
Width 130mm, Height 198mm, Spine 14mm
160g
It's the proudest moment of Jack's life - his debut as a professional footballer. Now he has a chance to achieve his dream of playing for his country. But it's 1914 and the world is at war. Talk of sportsmen's cowardice leads to the formation of a Footballers' Battalion and Jack has little choice but to join up. The promise of a Cup in Flanders offers a glimmer of hope, but Jack and his teammates will have to survive a waking nightmare if they are ever to play again.
"Another text that marks [Tom Palmer] out as a writer determined to find the soul within the soldier its fast pace will keep readers hurtling through" -- Just Imagine
"It's a stroke of brilliance to pair football with wartime history, and this combination is sure to enthral readers a lesson in empathy as much as history" -- BookTrust
Tom Palmer was a reluctant reader as a child and credits articles about football with getting him into reading. He went on to become a bookseller and then worked in reader development. He is well known for his hugely successful football fiction for Puffin, and is one of Barrington Stoke's topselling authors, writing about both sport and history with great appeal. He travels all over the UK visiting schools and working with charities, and is well loved across the book trade.