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+!
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