An insightful, gripping account of basketball and bias.
Political events surrounding the 1936 Olympics intersect with the evolution of basketball in this outstanding history.
The first game of basketball was played in 1891 without nets or dribbling. Created by James Naismith as an indoor winter activity that would support Muscular Christianity, early participants from the YMCA training program in Springfield, Massachusetts, soon spread the new game worldwide. When basketball was added as a sport in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Hitler saw it as an opportunity to showcase German might and athletic superiority. Meanwhile, American basketball players were holding fundraisers to help with travel costs while many Americans were calling for a boycott of the games altogether. Maraniss (Strong Inside, 2016, etc.) includes little-known facts about basketball, brutal information about Nazi Germany, and the harsh realities of blatant racism in the U.S. and Germany alike. The U.S. basketball team was all white; despite feeling conflicted by rampant anti-Semitism on both sides of the Atlantic, one Jewish player still chose to compete. Written with the captivating voice of a color commentator and the sobriety of a historian, Maraniss peppers readers with anecdotes, statistics, and play-by-play action, shining a spotlight on names found only in the footnotes of history while making it painfully clear that racism affected both politics and sport, tarnishing, a bit, each gold medal and the five Olympic rings.
An insightful, gripping account of basketball and bias. (afterword, Olympic basketball data, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-525-51463-3
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Aug. 20, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2019
A suspenseful story that starts off with great promise but fails to deliver.
A teenage girl struggles with the question of whom to trust in the age of social media exposure.
Thanks to Connie’s mom’s family vlog, her life is anything but private. She enjoyed it at first, but now, between the mean comments online and the cruel mockery from peers in real life, Connie feels like she’s in a prison. Her sister, Isla, says it’s worth it for the money, but Connie isn’t sure if that’s really true. Connie’s anger over Mom’s refusal to heed warnings that revealing so much puts them in danger continues to build. When she’s left alone for two weeks while Mom and Isla go on a college road trip, local girls start dying, and a fan reaches out on social media in an unsettling way, leaving Connie worried about her safety. White-presenting Connie’s sense of humor is charming, and her insights will earn readers’ sympathy as the tension builds. As emotions rise, Preston’s poetic language beautifully captures Connie’s feelings about her mom’s obsession with social media and her confusion about who is worthy of her trust. The topics of safety and the uncharted waters of social media are skillfully woven into the plot. However, some inconsistencies weaken the overall story: Apart from Connie, the characters are too lightly developed, and some plot points don’t align with earlier events and motivations, making the ultimate revelation a disappointment.
A suspenseful story that starts off with great promise but fails to deliver. (Thriller. 12-18)Pub Date: Dec. 2, 2025
ISBN: 9798217028009
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Nov. 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2026
Marcus is black and Eddie white in a multicultural Long Island neighborhood. Known to all as “Black and White,” they have honed their athletic skills together and are in the midst of a basketball season headed to the playoffs and scholarships to good colleges. They know each other’s timing and rhythm and feel complete trust in each other. However, off the court they have decided to supplement their income by holding up strangers for money for senior activities and the latest athletic shoes. Using Grandpa’s gun from Eddie’s attic, both think their initial success means invincibility. The nightmare that ensues when Eddie inadvertently hits the trigger—and their victim—becomes the playing field for the author’s exploration of how much difference race can make in the fate of each boy and their friendship. Rather than exploring the issue of race by pretending it doesn’t exist, Volponi points directly at it, illustrating at every turn that the race of the various characters influences events as well as whether Marcus will end up in prison alone. Consequences for everyone unfold and escalate in rapid-fire fashion. Hugely discussable. (Fiction. YA)
Pub Date: May 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-670-06006-2
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2005
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