This week YA Author D.P. Hardwick took over our Twitter as a part of our weekly Thursday Twitter Takeover. D.P. Hardwick is the author of The Cup (See YEM’s interview of D.P. Hardwick here.) See highlights from the takeover below.

Hi, this is D.P Hardwick, author of The Cup. Do you like to be on the edge of your seat wondering how a game is going to end? Do you like to laugh out loud to funny anecdotes about characters in a story? Then I have the book for you! #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

Do you like to find out more about the players in a game, or the characters in a movie or story? Do you like to put in your ear buds and listen to great music? Then I have the book for you! #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

Do you like to figure out how songs in a movie relate to the story? Do you like stories about overcoming obstacles and unlikely heroes? Then I have the book for you! #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

Do you like stories about ghosts and eerie, unexplained things? Do you like to read about entertaining events that contribute to the coming-of-age of characters? Then I have the book for you! #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

Do you like reading about lasting friendships? Do you like to laugh, cry, feel good and make emotional connections with characters and stories? Then I have the book for you. #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

“The Cup” is all of this and more. Follow along the journey through the ups and downs of a road hockey game on New Years Eve and of the characters’ childhood experiences. #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

The Cup is about the bizarre antics of this road hockey game in frigid Canada in the early 1970’s when sports were still in the hands of kids. Meet each lovable character as they navigate their lives and play in game 7 of the Stanley Cup final in the street. #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

The Cup is my debut book and is a touching, nostalgic story of friendship, teamwork, and unlikely heroes. As I learned from my Dad, and first coach, it’s not really about the game, it’s about life! #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

I wanted to write for years, but until my ideas became an obsession, ideas and stories pestering me, was I finally able to finish a book. I tapped into my childhood experiences and tied them to the actual hockey game. #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

Quotes from reviews: “Hardwick alternates his recount of the game with his memories of the different players…he touches on topics such as bullying, the connection you can have with a beloved pet, the supernatural, etc.” – Susan van der Walt, Reader’s Favorite #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

“D.P. Hardwick made me long for my childhood and its simple pleasures through the memories he shares…readers will enjoy the links to the music shared through the narrative.” – Susan van der Walt, Reader’s Favorite #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

“…a great adventure that is a hilarious, and often deeply touching, story down the memory lane…many excellent stories that will both entertain, and make readers feel a bit nostalgic over their own childhood.” – Lynette Latzko, Feathered Quill #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

“Readers will also easily find themselves falling in love with all of the characters, and will root for their favorites…devour all the author’s tales, and a few life lessons, sprinkled throughout the story.” – Lynette Latzko, Feathered Quill #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

“…for a fun-filled jaunt through the memories of D.P. Hardwick’s childhood, The Cup is sure to entertain readers of all ages.” – Lynette Latzko, Feathered Quill #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

“A touching love letter to sport, community, and Canada…While the big game might be taking place in the street in front of their homes, it’s a game we all know will bring drama, the heartache, and, for someone, the triumph.”-Joe Walters, Independent Book Review #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

“Author adds a nice interactive element to the novel by providing a playlist of music…it provides a cool excuse for readers to thrust themselves into the world of the story and maybe feel like they’re watching it on screen.”-Joe Walters, Independent Book Review #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

“The cozy hot cocoa atmosphere is a shining element to this already enjoyable novel”-Joe Walters, Independent Book Review #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

“The novel is romantic in the sense that it loves hockey deeply, that it recognizes the harshness of Manitoba winters and can still fall deeply in love with them anyway…It’s a nostalgic,hockey-loving novel with a big heart.”-Joe Walters, Independent Book Review #YAautherTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

The book ties the game,characters,connections with friends and family,music, and crazy adventures into a story that is really about inclusion and what friendship means. Emotional connections just add to the entertaining events and lessons described in the story. #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

Hockey is a big theme in the book. I grew up watching and playing hockey with my friends and still love it today. Each year I root for a Canadian team to win the Stanley Cup, but for the last several decades, I get disappointed. One of these years! #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

Music is another main theme in the book. Music is my escape, my relaxation, and my inspiration all rolled into one. I feel that the music in The Cup really adds to the enjoyment and impact of the book. #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

Another main theme I tried to convey was the general beauty of nature. Even in a terribly cold, frigid atmosphere, nature can be beautiful. In the times we live in today, it is my dire, desperate hope that we don’t lose this beauty forever! #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

Biggest lesson I learned writing this book-write from the heart and not from the head. Writing from your heart makes it sound so much more real and genuine! #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

The thing I love the most about reading? When I feel that I get to know the author a little better through their words and stories! #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022

Should you pick up a copy of The Cup, I hope you all enjoy the read…and the listen! I’ve really enjoyed my Twitter Takeover. Thank-you readers and Thank-you Young Entertainment Magazine!!-D.P. Hardwick #YAauthorTakeover

— Young Entertainment Magazine (@YoungEntmag) March 24, 2022