These characters help bring out Sunny’s uncompetitive and kind nature, and these traits make it easy to root for his success. Sunny’s diary entries show that he cares deeply about those in his life as well. They even encourage Sunny when he chooses to take up discus rather than run. Coach Brody and Sunny’s teammates, Lu, Ghost, and Patty provide their friend with unconditional support. Both are important parental figures for Sunny.

Sunny’s homeschool teacher, Aurelia, has a lighter, sillier personality that contrasts with Darryl’s relatively stony demeanor. The supporting cast is a small, but powerful force in Sunny’s life. In the end, the world isn’t perfect for Sunny, but he finds a certain peace within himself as he is able to release the emotions he’s been bottling up. Their shared moments of grief humanize them, and the end of the book shows the beginning of their healing process in their relationship and in their shared trauma over Sunny’s mother’s death. Despite his generally “sunny” outlook, Sunny and his father’s emotional relationship is most poignant in the story. Sunny’s diary entries reveal his pain and emphasize that he feels very much alone in the world. Discus allows Sunny to let go of his mother’s running dreams so he can become his own person. Sunny is a story about grief, forgiveness, honesty, and letting go of the screams within. When he begins letting his mother’s running dreams go, Sunny finally starts on his journey towards finding his own rhythm.

Told through Sunny’s diary entries, the third installment in Defenders Track Team series explores Sunny’s transition from long-distance runner to discus-thrower. But as he practices for this new event, can he let go of everything that’s been eating him up inside? Sunny discovers a track event that encompasses the hard beats of hip-hop, the precision of ballet, and the showmanship of dance as a whole: the discus throw.

With the growing conflict with his father, Sunny needs his friends on the track team more than ever. When Sunny stops running mid-race one day, he puts forth his first step into reclaiming his own life and making amends with the tragedy of his mother’s death. Actually, he hates running…but Sunny runs because it seems like the only thing Sunny can do right in his dad’s eyes is to win first place ribbons running the mile, just like his mom did. Sunny is the number one mile-running champ at every track meet, but he doesn’t care about that. The only time Sunny feels like he is doing something right is when he wins races. To make matters worse, Darryl (his dad, who makes Sunny call him by his first name) acts like everything Sunny does is wrong.

Jason reynolds sunny