Booked

Kwame Alexander

Like lightning/you strike/fast and free/legs zoom/down field/eyes fixed/on the checkered ball/on the goal/ten yards to go/can’t nobody stop you/can’t nobody cop you…

Twelve-year-old Nick is a football-mad boy who absolutely hates books. In this follow-up to the Newbery-winning novel The Crossover, football, family, love, and friendship take centre stage as Nick tries to figure out how to navigate his parents’ break-up, stand up to bullies, and impress the girl of his dreams. These challenges – which seem even harder than scoring a tie-breaking, game-winning goal – change his life, as well as his best friend’s. This energetic novel-in-verse by the poet Kwame Alexander captures all the thrills and setbacks, the action and emotion of a World Cup match.

Reviews

"An obvious love of words, and the way they flow together and create their own rhythm, makes Alexander’s work somewhat irresistible. . . To pick up Booked is to find yourself turning page after page, swept along as Nick spills out his story."
New York Times

"A satisfying, winning read"
Kirkus, starred review

"Eminently readable . . . readers will surely love Alexander's joyous word play and celebration of reading"
Booklist, starred review

"Alexander scores again. Emotionally resonant and with a pace like a player on a breakaway."
Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Warm and believable . . . Alexander understands reluctant readers deeply, and here hands them a protagonist who is a smart, reading-averse kid"
Horn Book, starred review