Cope Field

A 2026 Printz Honor Book

Crawford “Craw” Cope has anger issues. Or so they say.

When Craw is sentenced to community service for hitting his father in the head with a baseball bat, he accepts his punishment without objection, knowing he’s actually lucky. If he weren’t the son of a famous former baseball player, he’d probably have gotten it a lot worse. So, Craw keeps his mouth shut and takes what life gives him. Like always.

But when he arrives at community service, which frustratingly turns out to be repairing a dilapidated ball field to be named after his father, he meets Hannah Flores, a punk rock enthusiast trapped in the Ozarks with zero filter. As Craw navigates his own explosive home life, he learns more about hers. And as their friendship blossoms into something more, he begins to understand the importance of speaking his truth, even when doing so might destroy the only life he’s ever known.

T. L. Simpson is an award-winning journalist and novelist living in Arkansas. He is currently the editor of his hometown paper, The Courier. His fiction draws from his experiences growing up in the Ozarks, covering both sports and crime. Simpson lives in the Arkansas River Valley, between the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains, with his wife and four children. His debut contemporary YA novel, Strong Like You, released in 2024.