This book of poetry really surprised me. I didn’t expect to be
so intrigued by it, and when I opened the book to read it, I didn’t put it down
until I was done. I really enjoyed Alexander’s ability to put such vivid words
on a page and express the character’s feelings through free verse poetry, and
even changes in font and format.
These two twin brothers, Josh and Jordan, love
the game of basketball like it’s a way of life. For them, it is. Their dad was
a professional basketball star, who won championships playing for the Italian
team, and whose dreams were ended by an injury. Now, he lives for his boys to
play the game he loves so much, but he always misses the “swish.” Together, and
apart, the brothers experience glory, triumph, division, love, loss, and
loneliness… but the game of basketball inevitably keeps them all together. It’s
hard for me to go into too much of a summary without spoiling the progression
of the story, so do yourself a favor and go read this one. It’s a quick read,
but it’s heartwarming, heartbreaking, and downright emotional in every way.
Kwame Alexander is extremely talented. I am always completely blown away by
writers who can move me with dynamic poetry. He is a master of setting a tone that moves
and flows from one page to the next with seamless transitions. One minute, I
was laughing, and in the next, without even noticing it, I was grabbing the tissues:
that was the strength of this book.
If you enjoyed this book, check out some more books by Kwame
Alexander. The second book in the Crossover series is called Booked. I really want to read that one as well. I think this is the perfect book to entice high school kids into a
poetry unit!
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