Young hoop dreamers will find this a highly engaging read about one of today’s most skilled players.
In this middle-grade biography of top basketball talent Kevin Durant, readers learn the passion, persistence, and self-discipline that have made him one of the greatest offensive players ever.
Kevin Durant is both one of the most skilled basketball players of his generation and an incredible inspiration for many. Greatness doesn’t come without a bit of backlash, as much of his record-breaking, hall-of-fame-in-the-making–NBA career has been reduced to one decision he made in 2016 to leave the stagnating Oklahoma City Thunder to join a successful Golden State Warriors team. Wetzel here resets the narrative by taking the long view on the incredible work ethic and discipline that earned Durant all types of accolades along his journey from Prince George’s County, Maryland, to the top of the basketball ranks. Readers meet the community behind the man, including coaches Charles Craig and Taras Brown and, of course, his beloved mother, Wanda Durant. Wetzel, who works as a columnist for Yahoo Sports, draws the details of Durant’s life story from published reporting done throughout the years, disregarding much of the commentary to focus on the words and framing offered by KD himself. Baez’s comics-style illustrations are dotted throughout the chapters, concluding with a spotlighted final sequence of the dagger three Durant sank over Lebron James on his way to his first championship ring in 2017.
Young hoop dreamers will find this a highly engaging read about one of today’s most skilled players. (Biography. 9-12)Pub Date: Aug. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-250-29583-5
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: June 2, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2020
A spirited biography untangles the accretion of myth and story around Pocahontas and makes clear what little is actually known and what fragments of the historical record are available. The text is rich in illustration and in sidebars (on longhouses, colonial diet, weaponry and so on) that illuminate the central narrative. Whether Pocahontas saved John Smith’s life directly or as part of an elaborate ritual might not matter, argues Jones. Pocahontas and her people were certainly responsible for keeping the English settlement of Jamestown from starvation. Relations between English settlers and Native people were uneasy at best, and the author traces these carefully, relating how Pocahontas was later kidnapped by the British and held for ransom. When none was forthcoming, she was converted both to English ways and the Christian religion, marrying the widower John Rolfe and traveling to England, where Pocahontas saw John Smith once again and died at about the age of 21. An excellent stab at myth busting and capturing the nuances of both the figure and her times. (glossary, bibliography, source notes, index) (Biography. 9-12)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-4027-6844-6
Page Count: 124
Publisher: Sterling
Review Posted Online: Aug. 31, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2010
While the historical record is regrettably light on this Shoshone teenager, Berne stitches together a compelling narrative from what is known, taking care to bust myths along the way. Sacagawea had been kidnapped by the Hidatsa and sold or given to Toussaint Charbonneau as a wife before she was 14. Because she knew both the Shoshone and Hidatsa languages, she was seen as an invaluable link for communication to the Lewis and Clark expedition, which hired her French-Canadian trader husband. During the 16-month journey (1805-06), she acted as translator, located edible food and was a visible symbol of peace (no war party would have a woman), all the while carrying and nurturing her baby son, Jean-Baptiste. The author stresses the paucity of information even as she extrapolates what she can; Sacagawea's kindness and resourcefulness are evident from the Lewis and Clark records, for instance. Sidebars and illustrations enrich the account (about Native-American baby care, trade goods, Lewis’s Newfoundland dog, Seaman). Some repetition could have been edited out, but this is still a good addition to this biographical series. (glossary, bibliography, source notes, index) (Biography. 9-12)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-4027-6845-3
Page Count: 124
Publisher: Sterling
Review Posted Online: Aug. 31, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2010
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