Sunny by Jason Reynolds

Sunny is fast.  He always wins the mile race. Every. Single. Time.  His big secret is that he doesn't like to run.  His whole life his father has been pressuring him to run, because his mother, who died in childbirth, was a champion runner. What Sunny really likes to do is dance.  Is there any way that he can stay on the team he loves, but not have to run anymore?

This is the third in the Track series by Jason Reynolds.  This one is written in diary form, and has a unique voice character.  Like many early teen boys, Sunny talks and thinks a lot in sound affects.  I listened to the book on CD, and the reader does an amazing job of recreating a 13-year-old boy's colorful and a-linear train of thought. He adds rap beats and a variety of vocalizations with abandon.   The relationship between Sunny and his still-grieving father creates the emotional center of the book, and like the rest in the series, it has a sweet message about family and friendship. (2018, 159 p.)