Review Detail

DJ Schwenk from Dairy Queen and Off Season returns in the final book of the Dairy Queen trilogy.  In the book, shes confronted with the trauma of dealing with boyfriends, basketball and college. 

If you recall Dairy Queen, over the summer she coached Brian Nelson, a rival school quarterback, and fell in love.  However, being from rival schools didnt help the relationship.  In Off Season, her brother, Win, incurred a paralyzing hit in a football game and DJs family is consumed with getting him through the ordeal.  DJ, realizing her relationship with Brian is fraught with failure, breaks up with him and refuses to even talk to him.

In Front and Center, DJ starts dating Beaner, her best friend, but the spark isnt there.  She keeps thinking of Brian.  Win is hounding her to call college coaches and tell them shes interested in playing Division I basketball, which shes not.  Her coach is pushing her to assume a more leadership role on the team.  Everyone is telling her what to do&their opinion, what they want.  Its only Brian, who she begins talking to, who tells her what he thinks is best for her.

Murdock continues her saga of DJ growing up and it is best if you have read the first two books in the series.  DJ must learn how to handle life, or maybe realize that she has been handling it all along, probably better than most kids her age.  DJ has a nice, easy way about her, which makes her an endearing character.  All Front and Center characters are real.  You can imagine them being your family and friends.  The dilemmas that DJ goes through are real enough.  The outcome is totally predictable.  I loved Dairy Queen and liked Off Season a lot.  Although, Front and Center kept my interest, it wasnt as absorbing as the first two books.  It didnt have the zing, the crises, story line of its forerunners.  DJ fans will enjoy finding out what happens.  Other readers?  Consider this a good, easy read.