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What: “The Beautiful Game”

Author: Jonathan Littman (Avon Books, $23)

* “At times, Heather resembled an impish Gwyneth Paltrow. It wasn’t just her classic features and slightly upturned nose. Heather’s pointed elbows and impossibly thin legs sometimes gave her the appearance of a stick figure in motion.”

* “Trinity was hard to get a lock on: One eye was nutty brown, the other was blue-green. She had chiseled, Christie Brinkley good looks, and thick eyebrows that jumped or fell to forecast her mood.”

* “Kristin had the poise of a debutante, but she also had the sinewy legs of a competitive tennis player she’d been. Angela, of course, had those years of ballet training, and track, but Shauna was a thoroughbred, from her dark thick mane to her great soccer build.”

There you have it. Is this a romance novel or an inspiring story about a youth soccer team from Santa Rosa? Is rakish-yet-reserved Rhett going to appear in Chapter 3?

Indeed, this is a season inside, an honest long look at a girls’ elite soccer team. Patience is advised, however. Once you get past some of Littman’s bothersome physical descriptions, this is a book worth reading, whether you are a soccer player, a soccer parent or both.

A soccer team, of any age group, is going to have its share of drama. A hated coach. Meddling parents. More shifting alliances than a United Nations assembly.

Here, the primary focus is rookie coach Emiria Salzmann, a star player from Sonoma State. Salzmann’s learning season, warts and all, is explored in detail, on and off the field.

Eventually, the girls grow--learn a few things about life and sport--and so does Salzmann. As for the author, he lifts his game too. After a rocky first 10 minutes, out of a demanding 90, Littman finishes well.