Moon Runner - Tapa dura

With subtlety and insight, the author of SILK UMBRELLAS and THE GOLD-THREADED DRESS explores the delicate issue of competition between friends.

The "Fellow Friends" have a secret handshake and a special Friendship Ball made of scraps of colored yarn. The four of them — Ruth, the athlete; Sammy, the bug collector; Alana, the avid reader; and Mina, the newest friend — take turns bringing the ball home from school every day, each one adding something new. Gradually, the ball has grown as fat and round as a full moon.

But when Mina, a self-professed "girlie-girl," learns that she excels at track, the other Fellow Friends are as shocked as she is, especially the competitive Ruth. Even more surprising is the way running seems to lift Mina up and make her happy. When Coach chooses her to run the fifty-meter against Ruth, Mina faces an unhappy predicament. Should she slow down on purpose and let Ruth hold on to the spotlight? Or let herself soar?

Carolyn Marsden is the author of THE GOLD-THREADED DRESS, which received much critical acclaim and was named a BOOKLIST Top Ten Youth First Novel; SILK UMBRELLAS; and MAMA HAD TO WORK ON CHRISTMAS. Of MOON RUNNER she says, "When my eleven-year-old daughter became a sudden track star, I sensed the potential for a good story. As the conflict developed between her and her athletic friend, I knew this was a story I had to write." Carolyn Marsden has an MFA in Writing for Children from Vermont College and lives in California with her husband, mother, and two daughters.