Cover of Heart of a Champion

Heart of a Champion

by Carl Deuker

Audible trial: new members only. As an Amazon Associate, ReadingList earns from qualifying purchases and membership trials at no extra cost to you.

Assigned across 1 curriculum list · 1 state

Grade placement varies by school — the median assigned book spans 4 grade levels (83% span three or more, across 13,258 source-cited assignments).

On reading-award lists:Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania)

Heart of a Champion by Carl Deuker is assigned in US schools at grades 6–8. It appears across 1 curriculum reference and 1 state, sourced from state DOE pages and AP/IB/Common Core syllabi. Every citation below links to the primary source.

This page shows where Heart of a Champion is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.

Grade range
Grades 6–8
Age range
Ages 11–13
Pages
199
Reading time
about 3h 40m (est.)
First published
1993
Genre
Realistic Fiction
ISBN-13
9780316181662

New to these terms? Reading levels by grade

More formats & details

Other formats on Amazon: Kindle · Audiobook

As an Amazon Associate, ReadingList earns from qualifying purchases and membership trials at no extra cost to you. Pricing, Prime, and trial terms shown on Amazon.

About this book

Seth faces a strain on his friendship with Jimmy, who is both a baseball champion and something of an irresponsible fool, when Jimmy is kicked off the team.

Similar grade-level books

See all books like Heart of a Champion→ — matched on theme + reading level.

Why widely assigned

This Realistic Fiction title, typically at grades 6–8. Written in the 1990s; pairs with curriculum units on baseball and friendship; cited across 1 curriculum framework.

Themes

baseball · friendship · baseball, fiction · friendship, fiction

Where this book is assigned

Was this page helpful?

Common questions

What grade level is Heart of a Champion?
Heart of a Champion is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 6–8. Specific grade placement varies by curriculum — AP Literature and IB English Literature typically use it in grades 11-12.
How long does it take to read Heart of a Champion?
It takes about 3h 40m to read Heart of a Champion (199 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 220 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
What curricula assign Heart of a Champion?
Heart of a Champion appears on reading lists for Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania). Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
Is Heart of a Champion banned in schools?
Heart of a Champion does not appear in PEN America's Index of School Book Bans 2022-2024. No documented multi-district removals on record, but individual districts may challenge titles locally.
What themes does Heart of a Champion explore?
Central themes in Heart of a Champion include baseball, friendship, baseball, fiction, friendship, fiction. These themes match how the book is discussed in most curriculum guides and AP Literature prompts.

Why this book is on this list

How we classify

Each dimension below is sourced from a public reference. The full framework is documented on the classification standard page.

Lexile measure
Not classified — this book has no published Lexile measure.
Grade band
Grades 6–8 — drawn from state ELA frameworks and AP/IB syllabi citing this book.
Curriculum alignment
Cited in 1 curriculum on this site (see “Where assigned” above for primary-source links).
State-level evidence
Cited in 1 state ELA framework or DOE list (see citations above).
Removal / banning records
No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
Seasonal / contextual tags
Tagged for: book-club.

Keep browsing