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Stealing the
Game
by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Raymond Obstfeld
c.2015, Disney Hyperion
$16.99 / $17.99 Canada
293 pages
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
The Truth Contributor
Oh, how you hate to lose!
You hate it so much, in fact, that it’s not really an
option: you’ll do anything and work hardest to make sure
that you’re not finishing last. It’s all or nothing for you,
and in the new book Stealing the Game by Kareem
Abdul-Jabbar and Raymond Obstfeld, it’s about more than
how you play the game.
Everyone at Orangetree Middle School knew that 13-year-old
Chris Richards was someone they could trust, a decent-enough
student, but kind of quiet. Even Chris himself would admit
that, and he was okay with it. He always thought his
observation skills were better than anything else he did,
except maybe basketball.
Yep, Chris was a good kid. So it came as a huge surprise to
everyone when a cop came to algebra class and escorted him
to the principal’s office.
The whole mess started four days earlier.
Jax, Chris’s older brother was the “Golden Boy.” Always
likeable, good-hearted, smart, capable, and responsible, Jax
had spent the last year at Stanford University on a full
scholarship, studying to being a lawyer. The Richards – both
lawyers – were proud of him but when Jax came home and
announced that he’d quit school, well, it was like World War
III had started in the living room.
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Kareem Abdul-Jabbar |
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Chris had always looked up to Jax, and Jax’s behavior didn’t
make sense. Then again, in Chris’s world, not much did.
Girls were a total mystery, teachers were a surprise, and
most of his classes were a struggle. But basketball… now,
that made sense. For Chris, the only thing better than a
good pick-up game was drawing comics.
Ever since his parents started pushing Chris toward college,
he wished he could tell them that being a comic book artist
was what he wanted to do someday. He loved comics, loved
collecting them, and he loved imagining ways that his own
main character, Master Thief, could save the world.
But Master Thief couldn’t save Jax. Jax, in fact, was in
big trouble and he needed Chris’s help with a real
burglary.
Jax, you see, had a secret life, too…
Ka-thunk-ka-thunk-ka-thunk. If you’ve got a basketball fan
around, that’s a familiar sound at your house. But you’ll
silence that sound for a few hours, if you can swap the ball
for this book.
More than just a basketball novel, Stealing the Game
is also a mystery, solved by a sharp, smart, funny, and
genuinely nice 13-year-old. The real Dream Team of authors
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Raymond Obstfeld introduce readers
to that kind of kid, the one you wish your kids would hang
out with - but while Chris Richards is surely the star here,
the whole rest of the cast of this story appealed to me,
too. And the book’s Big Reveal? It’s perfect. Three points.
Another nice thing: there’s a strong girl b-baller here as
well, which means that this isn’t just a book for boys.
Actually, it’s not just a book for kids, either: for
anybody, any age, Stealing the Game is a win. |
