Reviews for Middle School Plan for Students With College-bound Dreams

The average rating for Middle School Plan for Students With College-bound Dreams based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2017-03-25 00:00:00 Thomas Barrett Jim Morris loved baseball -- was obsessed, really -- but also was exceedingly injury prone and a terrible, terrible decision maker. He springboarded from junior college to the minor leagues, out to have shoulder surgery, back again, and then out for good. During this time he got married to a wife who also did not make the best decisions, and accumulated more injuries. Post baseball, he had a bunch of low-level jobs, a side stint as an All-American punter in D-II football, and made many WHYYYY ARE YOU DOING THAT YOU FOOL decisions. (At the very least Morris needed to spend some serious quality time with Dave Ramsey. ) Anyway, at long last, we get to the reason for the memoire: while coaching a high school baseball team, thirty-five year old Morris promised his players that he'd try out for professional baseball again if they won the district championship. They did, and he did, and apparently that old guy had aged like fine wine and his arm surgeries had turned him into the bionic man. Back into professional baseball, he wound up (very briefly) as a major league baseball player before injuries knocked him out again. This stint in the majors gave him a second career as an inspirational speaker, royalties for an inspirational movie, and this much less inspirational book. As a connoisseur of terrible decision-making, I really enjoyed this, and it was interesting getting to know Morris. Nice to learn a few additional details about a player's perspective of the business side of baseball as well. Not really a place to stick it in the main review, but I want to remember the source of this very short anecdote (pp 123-125 in my copy): Morris, in his typical fashion, wanted to replace his four month old, not yet paid for, and far too expensive new car with an even fancier and absurdly priced model. The salesman looked him over and told him to go away and think about it some more. In a rare fit of sanity, Morris thought, and didn't buy the car. Morris' mother called to thank the salesman for being so honest, arranged to meet him, and, armed with clear proof of the salesman's character, married him in short order.

Review # 2 was written on 2013-03-14 00:00:00 Keith Stewart In this 288-page biography, Jim Morris is an amazing baseball player growing up and has dreams to become a major-league pitcher. When he graduates high school, though, life hits him. He has an unexpected baby, is low on money, and he isn't going anywhere in baseball. Over the next few years he tries over and over to advance, but he is plagued with arm injuries that keep him from moving up to the next league. When he finally settles down and finds a teaching job, he coaches the high school baseball team there. They make him promise that if they win the regional championship, he has to try out again. They win, so he goes to try out and is drafted to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. I especially like this book partially for two reasons; one was because I share his love for baseball, and two because the film version of this book was one of my favorite movies growing up. Other than that, the book was pretty well-written and interesting. I enjoyed reading it, and I recommend it to anyone who thinks that they are too old to achieve their dreams.