In Stotan! Crutcher begins with a seemingly typical formula plot involving a team that is sparked on to victory as the result of a teammate's illness.

Crutcher infuses this simple story with narrative complexity, a literate and readable style, and believable characters, making it worth reading. The central idea of becoming a Stotan is used to structure the novel and a number of seemingly unconnected episodes reveal the boys' gradual movement toward their ideal.

Much of the novel's effectiveness results from the introspective, sometimes cocky voice of the narrator, Walker Dupree. Walker's descriptions of Stotan Week, as well as the final championship, which contain vivid, specific details that clearly come from Crutcher's own experience as an athlete, help the reader to share the team's experiences. The novel is presented in the form of Walker Dupree's diary, which provides both immediacy and suspense, since Walker does not...