Earlier this month, I made a list of books that covered the topic of 'soccer' in some way as a way to tie it in with the 2026 FIFA World Cup games.
I am not a soccer fan, nor did I watch any of the 2026 FIFA World Cup games. With the 2026 FIFA World Cup happening, I decided to search for books that discuss soccer in some way. My hope is to inspire readers who are also soccer fans to read more books on a topic they like.
One of the books I discovered was Over the Line by Tom Palmer. Tom Palmer is a new to me author. Initially what attracted me to Over the Line by Tom Palmer was the fact that it features a large chunk of its subject matter to soccer. I soon learned that this children's/middle school novel is a work of historical fiction set in Europe during World War I. The events are inspired by real life events, which makes for good reading.
So, within a few minutes after learning about Over the Line by Tom Palmer, I downloaded and began listening to the unabridged audio version. Essentially, I finished listening to this book 2 hour, 10 minutes in one sitting.
The writing is good and so is the storyline for Over the Line. I was impressed with how much I enjoyed Over the Line. Perhaps, I'll have to give another one of Tom Palmer's novels a try in the future.
Tom Palmer has a YouTube page. I watched the following short video of Mr. Palmer reading a section from his novel, Over The Line.
Below is the publisher's summary for Over the Line by Tom Palmer found on the Goodreads website:
Based on a true story of a sporting hero's experience in the trenches. Jack is to make his debut as a professional footballer, but it's 1914 and the world is at war. Talk of sportsmen's cowardice leads to the formation of a Footballers' Battalion and Jack has little choice but to join up. Jack and his team-mates will have to survive a waking nightmare if they are ever to play again.
I am giving Over the Line by Tom Palmer a rating of 4.5 stars out of 5 stars.
Until my next post, happy reading!!
