|
|
Harkrader shoots and scores: her middle grades
novel Airball is an absolute winner. Picture it: Stuckey, Kansas - this
windblown town claims to be the basketball capital of the state, but its boast
rests solely on the
broad-and-tall shoulders of favorite son Brett "McNet" McGrew, who long ago
moved on to the NBA.
Kirby Nickel, a seventh grader at Stuckey Middle School, is determined to meet
the famous "McNet" when KU retires his hero's college jersey. To do that,
though, Kirby has to do the unthinkable: join the basketball team. And that's a
problem. You see, the Stuckey Prairie Dogs have no game. Seriously, none. And
Kirby is the dorkiest and most maladroit of them all. But Kirby is motivated
like nobody's business because in order to meet Brett McGrew, his team needs to
win, and Kirby really needs that meeting because he's convinced that McGrew -
hometown hero and NBA champ - is his father. So, even though he's but a middling
middle school athlete, Kirby is willing to do everything he can to make the
Prairie Dogs the winningest team around.
Lisa Harkrader grew up in Tonganoxie, graduated from the University of Kansas in
1988, and now writes and substitute teaches in Tonganoxie. She's been writing
for children for fourteen years, but Airball is her first novel under her
own name. In it, she crafts a classic underdog story that recognizes: "Deep down
inside, everybody wants to be a hero."
Airball works so well because it emphasizes the fundamentals: the story
moves; the jokes hit nothing but net; and the players - from the tetchy school
administrator with "a voice that can split atoms" to Kirby's basketball-obsessed
grandmother - are solid, enjoyable characters that you'll cheer.
The book has hustle, effortlessly carrying the theme of belief in oneself while
dribbling out good humor and middle-school hilarity. And it isn't just funny;
it's Kansas funny. You'll be laughing extra hard because these are our jokes. In
Airball, you'll recognize your friends, your neighbors, your hardwood
heroes, and in Kirby - provided you have a mighty heart that beats with a love
of Kansas basketball - you'll recognize yourself.
Airball is written for readers ages 9-12, but fans older and younger will
want a shot at it, too.
Review by Mark
David Bradshaw
|
