Donte wishes nobody could see him, especially Alan, the bully at school that taunts him. As one of the only black students in his new private school, nobody looks like him and everybody seems to notice him for the wrong reasons. Even his teachers subconsciously select him as the "problem" student even when he isn't. When Alan gets Donte into trouble, and then arrested, Donte is led out of school by the police. Released from jail, his parents furious at the system and completely broken, Donte discovers redemption through fencing and a coach that teaches him a lot about life. This is another powerful book by Jewell Parker Rhodes, Donte's arrest highlights a real threat in America, black students going from high school to prison in a highly organised and deliberate system. Donte's struggle is one that many black students face in the United States. This is an important book, like her previous work, Ghost Boys, and I'm very excited to introduce it to our students in September. Highly recommended for ages 11+.
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Gene Luen Yang is a bestselling graphic novelist and a teacher at Bishop O'Dowd Catholic School. He's struggling to come up with a new graphic novel idea after his best selling work "American Born Chinese." After hearing a buzz around school surrounding O'Dowd's basketball team, The Dragons, he decides to talk to the coach to see if there's a story there. The issue is that Gene is not a sports guy, he's a comic book guy. When he was young he was nicknamed "Stick" by his classmates because he was so skinny. He's always shied away from competitive sports because it's not the world he feels comfortable in. However, once he becomes immersed in the world of The Dragons, he finds himself fascinated with the players' back story and the competition that surrounds them. Dragon Hoops is not only a whirlwind history of basketball, it's a fascinating glimpse into the real lives of these players and coaches. Yang covers the anxiety, fears and even racist attitudes that the players face on a daily basis. I love dhow he slowly grew more and more excited about each upcoming game, much to the confusion of his family. It's a wonderful graphic novel for fans of basketball, comics and true stories told with an honest voice. I recommend it for ages 11+! This is the second book in my sponsored read. I'm reading one YA book a week that tackles mental health, depression, substance abuse and other issues. I'm doing this in memory of my brother Matt who passed away in August 2018. I'm hoping to raise money for a charity close to him and our family. For more details, and to donate, you can go here: https://bit.ly/2NeAetH THE BOXER by Nikesh Shukla is about 17 year old Sunny. After a racist attack at a train station, he's left bloody, beaten and filled with PTSD and anxiety. After some convincing, he decides to join a boxing gym. Over time he becomes more confident and makes new friends. One of them is Keir, a boy with a troubled past but a kind heart. However, when Sunny learns that Keir's brother and father are hardcore racists, he becomes angry, frightened and confused. When another incident incites racial tensions to rise in their home city of Bristol, Keir and Sunny find themselves at opposite ends of the argument. This culminates in Sunny facing off against Keir in a boxing match, one that Keir claims will end Sunny's hopes of ever boxing again. THE BOXER is told in alternate chapters, with Sunny & Keir facing off in the ring and the other chapters flashing back to the incidents leading up to the match. It's masterful storytelling and highlights the deep racial issues that are prevalent in the UK. Sunny is a boy with deep problems, he's suffering from the trauma of the attack and grappling with the reality that his father is going to die. He and his father have a difficult and complicated relationship, which makes visiting him in the hospital tricky, it also makes talking about his feelings even harder for Sunny. I also learned a lot about the sport of boxing, and how it can have therapeutic qualities. Sunny's depression, anxiety and social awkwardness cuts to the bone in a very honest way. I feel like Nikesh was able to express how someone dealing with these issues on top of being attacked for having darker skin in a very nuanced way. The pace of this novel is fast and it's loaded with discussion points for students, which I love. I know it's going to be in the hands of lots of students next year and I can't wait. Rebound is the amazing prequel to Alexander's amazing novel The Crossover. It takes place during one sweltering summer in the late 80s. Charlie (Chuck) Bell has just gotten himself into trouble for being involved with the wrong crowd. His dad has just died from a heart complications and he's on the edge. His only escape is comics books, namely The Fantastic Four. When his mom tells him he's being shipped off to live with his grandparents in Washington, D.C. for summer, he's heartbroken. He's starting to develop feelings for his friend CJ, but now he's going to be taken away from her for the whole summer. In Washington his Grandfather makes him work to earn his keep. He meets his cousin Roxie, who is an awesome basketball player but Chuck doesn't like basketball, he likes comic books and CJ and candy and he wants his dad back. When Roxie nearly forces him to start shooting hoop with her, Chuck reluctantly agrees. Slowly but surely, he begins to develop a love for the game. However, when old friends from his hometown descend upon Washington, Chuck is once again thrown into a world that could land him in deep trouble. Told in prose, Rebound is another gem from Kwame Alexander. His books are a huge hit at the Glenthorne Library and I know I'm going to need several copies of this book to keep the students satisfied! Wing has always lived under the radar. Her brother Marcus is always the one in the limelight. He's charming, funny and a high school football star with a promising professional sports career looming on the horizon. Wing seems resigned to the fact that she's always going to be on the side lines, never quite fitting in and secretly harbouring a crush on Marcus' best friend Aaron. Then a tragedy strikes the family (I won't spoil it here) and Wing is forced to find something inside of herself that can take her mind off the psychological torment her family is going through. She finds her strength in running. To everyone's surprise, even her own, she's really, really fast. Wing focuses on running to ease her pain, but it's not enough. On top of the tragedy, her mother can no longer pay the bills, meaning the bank is threatening to take the home away. Desperate, Wing decides to use her new found running skills to good use: a nationwide competition looking for a spokesperson for a brand of awesome running shoes. As the clock ticks towards the competition, Wing is unsure if she can handle the pressure surrounding her and her family. Wing Jones is an emotional glimpse into family tragedy and the guilt that can accompany it. I really enjoyed watching Wing's confidence grow through her running and how it helped her cope with the tragedy and her overall social skills. I think people need to find something, at least one thing in life that they can latch onto to help them through tough times or just times of insecurity. Wing Jones is about finding that thing and going all in, never giving in and not letting the bastards get you down as they say. I highly recommend this book for ages 13 and up! Jennifer and Maisie are best friends. After bonding at the all-female roller derby tryouts, dubbed the Fresh Meat Orientation, they become inseparable. However, when they are both drafted to different teams and forced to compete against each other and bond with different teammates, their friendship is tested to its limits. This first in a series of four volumes is a hilarious, honest and interesting look at modern friendships, trust and of course the incredible world of roller derby. I flew through this book in record time, I loved all of the characters, each one has tremendous depth. Slam! is a real punch to the guts, in a good way. I can't wait to get this into the hands of our students, they're going to devour this story. I recommend it to ages 14 and up! Castle Cranshaw, aka Ghost, has a lot on his mind, mostly anger. His favourite sport is basketball but a chance encounter on the track field gets the attention of an Olympic medal-winning coach who recruits him for the track team. Ghost has some real talent that the coach tries to draw out but things keep getting in the way. Things like Ghost's dark past, his anger issues, his lying and his belief that nobody is willing to truly help him. If he's going to be serious about running and be part of a team, he needs to confront the things that are haunting him first. Ghost is an amazing book, I think it should be required reading. It taps into the anger and frustration that a lot of young teens face, especially those from broken homes or those who don't have privileged upbringings. However, this is a book for everyone, it's a shot of hope and resilience in the arm. Everyone needs someone like Coach in their life, someone who cuts through red tape with a razor sharp tongue. Someone who doesn't cut you any slack but still deep down cares about you very much. If all of the students I interact with in the library had someone like Coach in their ear, I think they'd be better off for it. Ghost is the next best thing. I cannot wait to get this into the hands of our students this year. I recommend it for ages 10 and up! When AJ's grandfather dies, his life seems to spiral out of control in a matter of days. AJ's parents are around, but due to their learning disabilities they aren't able to maintain a stable living environment. AJ's only escape is running. He's aiming to get into the national competition that's coming up. His big problem is that his running shoes don't fit anymore. He's resorted to cutting the toes out so he can squeeze into him. All of his money goes to paying the electric meter at his house. As the bills pile up, so does AJ's anxiety. He starts lashing out at school and nobody seems to know what the problem is. He's dealing with way too much for an eleven year old but nobody seems to notice. Will he be able to keep his family afloat and make it into the national running competition? Running on Empty is a really strong novel. It deals with sensitive topics and turns them into a story that everyone can relate to. If you like See You in the Cosmos by Jack Cheng, which was one of my favourites of 2017, then you'll love Running on Empty. I can guarantee this will be a student favourite at the school library I manage. Recommended for ages 10 and up! Budi has a plan. He wants to be a football star like his hero Kieran Wakefield. When Budi's a star he won't have to work in the sweatshop anymore. He won't have to be beaten by his foreman when he doesn't work fast enough or makes mistakes. Most of all, he'll be able to pay for his Grandma's medication and move his family into a neighbourhood that isn't crawling with poverty, sickness and addiction. This is Budi's life, yet he doesn't stop dreaming. Then one evening when Budi and his friends are in the street playing football, he accidentally kicks the ball into the home of The Dragon, the most dangerous man in Jakarta. The Dragon is angry, and tells Budi to do some dirty work for him. If he refuses, The Dragon will use his influence with the police department and make life even worse for him and his parents. Caught in an impossible situation, Budi is forced figure out a plan if he's going to protect the ones he loves. This is a great book, and an important one. I've already written a blog post on it discussing how attractive it is for reluctant and struggling readers which you can read here. Twelve year old Nick lives for soccer. Along with his best friend Coby, there's few moves he doesn't know on the pitch. Off the pitch, now that's a different story. His father's a wordsmith and makes Nick learn new, uncommon words on a regular basis. His mum's a horse fanatic that's tempted by a job in another state. As troubles at home mount, Nick finds the pressure of success and humiliation by bullies a little too much. Guided by a rapper turned librarian named Mac, Nick tries his best to figure life out before he gets swallowed up by it. Written in verse, Booked is a follow up to Alexander's award winning novel The Crossover, also written in verse. I really loved this story and can't wait to get it into the hands of the students at the school I work at. Nick's story could be any of the students' that I speak to on a daily basis and I know they'll connect with it on a deep level. I recommend Booked to ages 10 and up! |
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