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Ponga Boy
Phil Lebherz and Philip Reed
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Casebound with Jacket
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Audio CD
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Summary
Ponga Boy is a rollercoaster ride of a story about a young Mexican boys’ journey from small town bait fisherman to NCAA soccer megastar. Pichu Castillian, AKA Ponga Boy, grows up in a financially impoverished yet culturally rich fishing village at the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula where people go without, but want for nothing, the kids run as free as the wind and American sports fishermen go in droves to hook a Marlin. Pichu is the heart and soul of the dock, a local legend that works the “pongas” (bait fishing boats) each morning with his father and amazes locals and tourists alike with his seemingly illogical feats of athleticism. On a day just like any other, he attracts the attention of two Americans while juggling a soccer ball on the beach. The two men are NCAA soccer coaches and after witnessing Pichu’s unquestionable genius when playing for his local team they decide to offer him the opportunity of a lifetime; to go to America, try out for the University of San Francisco and receive a full scholarship to the school. Pichu leaves his family and the security of his idyllic fishing village and finds himself in a jarringly different environment. At first his skills seem unsuited to the cut-throat competition of a college team. But then a mysterious visitor, who sees him practicing alone at night, helps him develop "the unstoppable shot." Ponga Boy is both an exciting sports story and a poignant look at America through the eyes of someone from a very different culture. But it's also an inspiring coming-of-age story about a young man who finds out what exists in the very deepest place inside him.
About the Authors
Philip Reed has always loved reading and this lead him to become a writer. He began as a police reporter on Chicago's mean streets and then covered crime and politics in Denver, Colorado. Moving to Los Angeles, he was a theater critic and feature writer, then a playwright, screenwriter and novelist. He wrote one of the early episodes of "Miami Vice" and his first novel, Bird Dog, earned him Edgar and Anthony nominations. He currently test drives cars and writes features for Edmunds.com where he worked as an undercover reporter for the series "Confessions of a Car Salesman." Read more about his books at www.philip-reed.com.
Phil Lebherz is the son of a Navy doctor who moved from Maryland to Southern California. He was the youngest of five boys (he has two younger sisters) and his first memory is of being on the bottom of a "dog pile" where nearly seven hundred pounds of brothers were on top of him, squeezing the life out of him. But his brothers instilled in him a competitive edge that led him to sell Fuller Brush products in high school and later nail guns to construction workers. He went on to sell life insurance to motel owners in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco and finally founded his own company, LISI Inc., based in San Mateo, CA. He has also created the non-profit Foundation for Health Coverage Education to provide health care for people without insurance (www.coverageforall.org).
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