Hoops, by Walter Dean Myers tells the story of Lonnie Jackson, a Harlem kid who once had dreams of becoming a great basketball player. He is in his last year of high school and almost given up his dreams of playing basketball, until he gets asked to come play in a tournament that will give him a chance to get a college scholarship. At first, he is reluctant to do the tournament but eventually, his friends talk him into it. Everything seems to be going great until his coach, Cal, doesn’t show up for their first game, which they end up losing. They didn’t think much of it, but a couple of games later he misses another game. This causes great suspicion with most the players, especially Lonnie. He has gotten to know the coach well over the time he was coaching. Read the book to find out what happens to Cal and Lonnie’s futures.

Hoops is a great fiction book that is intriguing to all young adults who like a good sports story. I thought that the book was really good and kept you on your toes. Walter Dean Myers did a great job of portraying the character of Lonnie, he uses good detail and tells the story well. The climax isn’t until late in the book which keeps you reading it to the end. Walter Dean Myers did a great job at writing the book making Hoops a must read. I would recommend this to anyone who likes sports books and is above the age of twelve.