Some time ago, I taught a college class as an adjunct. Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team by Steve Sheinkin He can write about things I’m not interested in at all, and I know I’ll still love reading it. He could write about pineapple plantations or particle physics, and I’d read it. I’m always telling people how much I like his work. I’m also a fan of Bill Bryson–graduate of the high school up the road from me. Even if you aren’t a football fan, you might find yourself reading about the big games with a surprising amount of intensity. The Port Chicago 50 and Most Dangerous are non-fiction favorites of mine, and this is a great addition. I’ve been waiting for this book for several months, because I’ve enjoyed Steve Sheinkin’s past work for young people. Whether on the football field or in an Olympic stadium, he and his teammates worked and prepared for excellence, even when many of the words written and thrown out at them were racist, belittling, and just plain wrong. Things might have slowed him down once in a while, but it doesn’t sound like anything stopped him. Even when he sat down, he visualized the next race or what he could do differently the next time. But when you’re learning to read, you need the practice. Some would ask me, “Why don’t you just read it?” Maybe they weren’t interested, didn’t want to, or were afraid they’d do it wrong – it could be any number of things stopping them. When I was in a different job and the kids were in first grade, we’d sit together and read in a quiet corner or a loud hallway.
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