The 4th & Long was one of the most sincere books I have read. It follows Matthew, a high school freshman with Down syndrome and his football journey. From the first page, I was invested in Matthew’s life— not because he is disabled, but because I liked the novel's premise. I find it refreshing to read about a disabled person who is like everyone else. I find it tiring to read books that don’t consider the feelings of those with the underlying conditions, but the author did an exceptional job with Matthew. I wasn't expecting to enjoy the novel so much, but its exploration of difficult topics made it worthwhile. However, as much as I loved this book, there were some elements that could have used more work. For example, the narrative wasn’t as strong as it could have been if it was in the first person. At times, I was confused about who and where the story was following, and felt like dropping the book because of the confusion. Instead of in third person, I think it would’ve been better to use the first person so the audience could get more sense of the characters and their motivations. I also have to admit, I thought the author told things instead of giving descriptive details. It was annoying as I wanted to understand the characters a little more, especially at the beginning of the story. There wasn’t much description of the characters and I believe that is why I wasn't able to completely immerse myself in the story. I have to say it was a heartfelt novel that had a strong message of “don’t judge a book by its cover” so it's for that reason that I give the book 3 out of 5. If the writer had structured his words more clearly and paced the story more efficiently, I believe it would have gotten a much higher rating.