Ace On The Hill

Wesslen’s debut novel offers a charming, nostalgic coming-of-age story that transcends its time and place. When his father tells eleven-year-old Jayson “Jay” Zimmerman that the family is moving from Pennsylvania to Massachusetts, he’s upset that his life will be upended—again. After moving five times in his ten years, Jay worries that he will not be able to “plant new roots” like his parents suggest—particularly when it comes to making friends. But things begin looking up when his new neighbors Paul, Kenny, and Matt invite him to play a game of sandlot baseball.

Though Jay has quite an arm, he’s got a lot to learn off the baseball field. Some of his challenges are unique, like his struggle to decipher his teacher’s Boston accent, but others are tried and true benchmarks of growing up: adjusting to a new school, making friends, dealing with bullies, surviving a first crush. While occasionally putting his foot in his mouth, Jay faces all his ups and downs with resilience and humor, including his sometimes-fraught relationship with his parents: Jay’s father wants him to pursue a military career, but Jay isn’t sure he shares his father’s vision of his future.

The story follows Jay from middle school to high school graduation, moving quickly and smoothly from one episode to the next, albeit occasionally at the expense of deeper reflection. However, Jay’s world has impressive depth thanks to Wesslen’s authentic depiction of the complexities beneath the calm surface of suburban middle-class life in the 1970s. Wesslen celebrates the era but does not sugar coat it: alongside references to the Carpenters, Happy Days, and Strat-O-Matic, he also includes glimpses of its racism and homophobia. Though younger readers may not recognize these historical and cultural references, they will be able to relate to Wesslen’s well-drawn, multifaceted characters that stumble as much as they succeed.