It’s a rather flat little story that feels like something you read as an assignment, rather than because you’ve been drawn in to care about the characters.  In the last week of the swim season, shortly before the final meet, a foreign exchange students joins the team.  As soon as the announcement is made, one of the other swimmers raises the question, “Who joins a team at the end of the season?”  And the reader never does find out the answer to that question.  When the newcomer befriends one of the team’s champs, he explains how much he wants to win a medal, as he never has before, and seeks help in training. At the last minute, the two boys find themselves competing in the same event.  It’s rather predictable and simple, and I’d probably rate it as “not recommended,” except that I do have one student who has repeatedly checked out others in this series, so I’m willing to consider it may hold some appeal for students that I just don’t see.