Books with author Jim Fitzpatrick

At 15 years old, Ally Queen is uprooted from her comfortable city existence and dumped in a small town. Her mother, witness to a hit-and-run, is suffering from post-traumatic stress, and the quiet country life is supposed to improve her emotional state. Instead, the move just seems to make things worse—for Mom, for Ally, for everyone. Ally misses the way things used to be; she misses playing with her dad and little brother. But she’s a teenager now, and teenage girls don’t go fishing even if they really like it. When Ally meets Rel, she feels like she’s hit rock bottom, but first impressions can be deceptive. As she starts to relax into herself, Ally finds life doesn’t need to be as hard as she makes it. This is an absorbing and poignant story of first love and self-discovery for readers both young and old.

Spencer Gray is twelve years old -finally old enough to join Dad in his glider. His mates are going to be so jealous! Going up is awesome. Spencer can't believe he's actually there; can't believe he and his dad are flying in an aircraft with no engine high above the earth, the pastures green below them. Crazy! But when disaster strikes the glider mid-flight, leaving his dad badly injured, Spencer will need to be nothing short of amazing. Written in the believable and compelling voice of a 12-year-old boy. The Amazing Spencer Gray is a testimony to resilience and action that empowers young people. Suspenseful yet uplifting, this is a story of survival, family, and friendship.

“Fascinating. . . . One of the best books ever written on the rise and fall of a great college football coach.” —Allen Barra, San Francisco Chronicle The Lion in Autumn takes readers inside Penn StateÂ's storied football program as legendary coach Joe Paterno fights to turn his struggling team into a winner once again. In more than a half century at Penn State, Paterno has won more bowl games (21) than any other coach and more games (354) than all but one, en route to two national championships and five perfect seasons. But in the new millennium hard times arrived in Happy Valley. His Nittany Lions had losing seasons in four of five years, dropping sixteen of twenty-three games in 2003 and 2004. There were boos at Beaver Stadium and increasing calls for the aging Paterno to step down. Award-winning sportswriter Frank Fitzpatrick followed JoePa through the 2004 season as the beloved coach struggled to save himself and his storied program. Fitzpatrick trailed Paterno from fund-raisers to the spring practices to the sidelines, detailing how the coach endured another losing season while building a team that would win the Orange Bowl and compete for the national championship in 2005. Interweaving stories from past seasons into the narrative, Fitzpatrick fleshes out the legend of Paterno. BACKCOVER: “Insightful. . . . Fascinating reading.” —Chicago Tribune “A rather startling success. . . . Significant. . . . literary. . . . [Fitzpatrick] relies on his own tenacity and attention to detail with just the right amount of historical perspective.” —Pittsburgh Post- Gazette “[Demystifies] the college football coach, moving behind the spectacle of Saturday afternoon to reveal flesh and soul and humanity.” —Buz Bisinger, The New York Times “You donÂ't have to be a Penn State fan to appreciate it.” —ESPN.com

Theodore Roosevelt did more to conserve America's natural resources than any other U.S. president before him. As one of the most accomplished and most colorful characters to ever serve as president, Roosevelt was admired for being a war hero, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, a rancher, and a fearless champion of the working class. He was an avid outdoorsman and hunter and had a deep appreciation for nature. After he became president in 1901, he placed 230 million acres of American wilderness under government protection and established new laws that would limit the use of resources within these lands. In this brand-new volume, learn how Theodore Roosevelt had the foresight to protect America's natural resources and the impact that decision has had on the America of today.

Excerpt from The Outspan: Tales of South AfricaThe charm Of the life is indescribable, and none who have tasted it ever weary Of it, ever forget it, or cease to feel the longing to return when once they have quitted it.It was in '91, the year after the pioneers cut their way through the Bush, with Selous to guide them, and occupied Mashonaland. We followed their trail and lived again their anxious nights and days, when they, a small handful in a dense Bush, at the mercy Of the Matabele thousands, did not know at what hour they would be pounced on and massacred.About the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.comThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Spencer Gray is just an ordinary kid, but he manages to get in to some pretty extraordinary situations. Playing soccer at school with his mates he accidentally uncovers a sinister animal smuggling operation and rescues a super-endangered potoroo. But when the smugglers discover him trying to release the potoroo, he risks becoming super-endangered himself. Trussed up and left in the bush, he needs to use all his inner strength and ingenuity to break free and get help. With good friends and a great family to back him up, Spencer manages to triumph in the end. A page-turning adventure story for middle readers.