I loved this book. The stakes were clear and meaningful. The characters grew in realistic ways while the pace of the action was fast. I appreciated how Al wanted to play baseball because she loved it, not because of the narrative the school leaders wanted to push about her being the first girl. She was a strong character who found a way to use her position to bring attention to other great athletes. I also appreciated how the side characters were all well-developed and had motivations of their own. Finally, I loved the message that in order to be great at something you first have to be willing to be bad at it. This growth mindset book is a great addition to any school library.

I loved Picture Day so I was excited to read Tryouts and it did not disappoint! Al just wants to play the sport she loves, which means she needs to navigate playing on a tea, that has historically been boys-only. It was a fantastic read, and I know many of my students could relate to Al. I will definitely be adding this to my library!

Alexandra, known as Al to her friends, loves playing baseball. Not softball, because as she explains to her friends, that is a different game. The game she likes is baseball, and she wants to play for her school sports team, which is currently made up of boys. But, as she and her friends discover, Title IX says that if there is no equivalent team with girls on it, that girls get to try out for the boys team.


And so she goes for it, and gets on. And then the pressure is on. The tame has won nine years in a row, and the new couch wants this to be their tenth. And the principal thinks the best way to get there is to have the local tv station highlight the baseball team.


In the meantime, the girls basketball team is unbeaten. And no one is paying any attention to them. The attention that the tv station’s interview is corny, and cuts out all the things Al says about teamwork, and her team resents her. Thinking all she wants is glory, and that is when they start losing games.


Al knows something is wrong, but has no idea how to fix it.


Great story of pulling together, and working things out, and honoring those who are pulling and putting in their all. And as Al points out, she knows she can never play professionally, because there are no professional teams that will allow a woman to play. But she is dang sure that she is going to play as long as she can.


Cute story, with side characters that are silly yet supportive. Enjoyable graphic novel for the middle grade audience. Great pictures. Very enjoyable, while being deep, at times.


Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review. This book is being published the 7th of May 2024.

Personally, I could have done without the goose subplot. I thought it took away space from the interesting situation Al and her teammates are facing.

A hilarious follow-up to Picture Day! Read this one with my daughter as well and we both loved it. A great sports story about how being part of a team can bring out the best in us. I think this is one that all middle grade readers will enjoy. Highly recommend!

Return to Brinkley Middle School with Tryouts by @sarahsaxart
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Alexandra aka Al loves playing baseball with her older brothers. Baseball, not softball. When her middle school team has tryouts, Al’s friend Sammy convinces her to tryout for the team, even though it’s all-boys. The coach, surprisingly, is all for it and Al makes a great addition to the team, but when the tenth championship is on the line, will Al be able to step up to the plate?
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I loved Picture Day and this was such a great follow up. Lots of different perspectives can be included in this MG series and I loved the representation of a female on a male team. This should be common practice. This book releases May 7.

CW: misogyny

The cover and title caught my eye. I had just read another graphic novel about tryouts, so I wanted to see if they were similar. Well they were not. Baseball is my most favorite sport. I love how they have a girl who loves the game and just wants to play. This was a great story, that showed how kids can get along. It doesn’t matter what gender they are to love something, be it baseball or sewing. The them for me is “you do you.” Great book.

Very cute graphic novel that’s the second book in the series. Great illustrations and a diverse cast of characters.
Al joins the boy’s baseball team and it doesn’t turn out the way she expected.

What a fun graphic novel touching on girls playing on traditionally boys sports teams but really talking about teamwork and how you have to work hard to be part of a team, not just make yourself better for you!

Tryouts was a fun and engaging book that focuses on many modern day issues. The author engages the reader in them without it being off putting or soapbox-esc. While I lost track of the pacing at one point, I really enjoyed the overall message of the book.

I loved this graphic novel, the story is great and inspiring, the characters are very funny and charismatic, the illustrations are quite cute and the general message is very good.

There's just something so wonderful about reading a book as an adult and realizing how much you would have loved it as a kid. It's like a book-ish time machine reading experience. That's totally was this was. Alexandra (Al) has aspirations of playing for her middle school baseball team, and her friends encourage her to go for it even though it's always been boys only. She makes the team, and she's met with a variety of challenges and frustrations as she does. There were also delightful subplots about the mascot and just finding where you fit in a school. I absolutely adored this one. This graphic novel series just captures middle school feels (that adults can connect with, too) in such a perfect way! Thanks to NetGalley for the early look at this May 2024 release!