Keeper

Author: Mal Peet
Recommended Age: Young Adult
Publisher: Candlewick Press
ISBN: 978-0-7636-3286-1
Year Published: 2003
No. Pages: 225
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Main Character Gender: Male
Read & Reviewed by: Christian



This book is about the life of El Gato (The Cat), the world cup winning goal keeper. In this book El Gato tells Paul Faustino a world class reporter about his life story. His life begins in a small logging camp in the Amazon Rainforest. Unlike all the other kids El Gato was a clumsy soccer player. One day, he explores the jungle and mysteriously finds a flattened space with soccer goals built on each end. As he walks onto the mysterious ground, a man steps out of the bushes. The man is the Keeper. The Keeper teaches El Gato the secrets of the game.

I am a goal keeper just like El Gato so I found the section in which he learns form the Keeper the most intriguing.The idea of a soccer field in the middle of a jungle and a mysterious coach was magical and unexpected. It immediately captured my interest and put me under the spell of the book.

As I’m also a sports fan I also found the part where Mal Peet describes the world cup winning shootout fascinating. The imagery made me feel like I was watching the game. This passage is one example in which the action unfolded in my mind: “The slender winger walked slowly to the penalty spot. His purple and yellow shirt looking too big for him.” Everything depended on this shot and it created a butterfly moment for me just like watching the World Cup on television. This is an incredible book for all sports fans.