Theme & Summary

The book One Shot at Forever has a very strong message the author is trying to convey.  That message is that bonding with the people around you can be what changes your life for the better.  I know this is a common theme with a lot of books/movies, but the author of One Shot at Forever, Chris Ballard goes into great detail about this theme.  In the beginning of the book, there were no bonds between players or coaches.  The theme didn't start developing until Coach Sweet became the coach of the baseball team.  Once he did that, the team started really liking Coach Sweet.  He started friendships with the players; he was basically everyone's best friend, but also their coach.  He'd have them over to play cards or just for dinner every once in a while.  By the end of the story, the bonds between the players and also with Coach Sweet are what makes the story so sweet.  The author gets as close to directly stating the theme without actually directly stating it.  A line from the synopsis perfectly states the theme: "A testament to the power of high school sports, One Shot at Forever reminds us that there are few bonds more sacred than that among a coach, a team, and a town." This line gives the reader a little hint of the theme, or the central message the story will have.  It identifies that the main part to the story is the relationships between everyone of the town of Macon.