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3.33 AVERAGE
3.33 AVERAGE
I read this for a class on young adult lit and information needs. I'm not the target audience so it doesn't resonate with me, but I can respect its place as a seminal piece of early young adult literature and its importance for the time it was published. Even though it's nearly 40 years old, I think teen boys today who are reluctant readers could still enjoy this one with its focus on boxing, resilience, and finding your identity amidst peer pressures and social inequalities.
I first read The Contender for a post-grad class on young adult literature about eight years ago. I chose it for a local book club meeting last month since it was my turn to pick. Since there were several men in the group who hadn’t read a lot of fiction, I wanted to choose something that would not only appeal to both men and women in general, but not be too difficult (while also making some good points and hopefully inspiring fun discussion). There’s a lot I could say about this book. And I actually had handouts and notes and all sorts of fun things that I compiled from my teaching days. But simply put, it’s a great book not only to read but also to use as a teaching tool on the high school level. I highly recommend it for that purpose. (Note: most people would spin this as a piece of sports fiction, but it really isn’t about the sport. It’s a human interest story.)
A “coming-of-age” sports story that I had never heard of, but is apparently fairly well known. It was solid, I think there were a few too many characters that convoluted the story and made it hard to follow at times.
It was a good, easy-to-read sports story about living in NYC and how getting involved in training at a gym kept him off the streets and gave him a new purpose in life.
I was judging this book pretty hard at the start knowing it was older and was written by a white man trying to take on Black characters and heavy topics. It bothered me that this was the case but given it was written in 1967 I have a little bit more forgiveness for that. The story was moving & I loved Alfred and his drive to become a boxer. The book showed what true genuine friendship can be and what it really takes to be a contender.
This is a decent book, just not my favorite. I had a hard time relating to any of the characters. Alfred Brooks is intriguing person. Very few people i know would give up everything they worked so incredibly hard on for a friend who has been rotten to you. That takes a strong person.
Reading this for my Young Adult Resources class. It takes place in the 1960s, in the "hood" and follows the identity crisis of a teen who can't decide how he feels about the political, racial and social turmoils surrounding the civil rights movement.
I didn't like it all that much. I felt the emotional turmoil of the kid was well written and pretty accurate. However, the writing style itself was irritating and repetitive. Obviously the author tried to recreate how jumpy and disjointed time can seem in the midst of a boxing match by using paragraphs full of short, one word sentences. I found it bothersome but effective. Perhaps it was the subject matter. I've always hated boxing.
I didn't like it all that much. I felt the emotional turmoil of the kid was well written and pretty accurate. However, the writing style itself was irritating and repetitive. Obviously the author tried to recreate how jumpy and disjointed time can seem in the midst of a boxing match by using paragraphs full of short, one word sentences. I found it bothersome but effective. Perhaps it was the subject matter. I've always hated boxing.
"Boxing is a dying sport. People aren't much interested anymore. They want easy things, like television, bowling, car rides."
Alfred Brooks wants to be somebody special - a champion. Donatelli assures him that's impossible - first Alfred has to train - train so hard he'll start to feel like it's not worth it, that he should just quit - that he'll never be a fighter at all, let alone a contender. But Alfred is determined, and begins to train, hard. When he's boxing, Alfred doesn't have to think about all the crap going on in his life, it's just him and the ring, nothing going on outside it matters at all. Inside the ring, Alfred can contend with his life.
Reading this book feels like a workout, I really enjoyed the writing style.
Alfred Brooks wants to be somebody special - a champion. Donatelli assures him that's impossible - first Alfred has to train - train so hard he'll start to feel like it's not worth it, that he should just quit - that he'll never be a fighter at all, let alone a contender. But Alfred is determined, and begins to train, hard. When he's boxing, Alfred doesn't have to think about all the crap going on in his life, it's just him and the ring, nothing going on outside it matters at all. Inside the ring, Alfred can contend with his life.
Reading this book feels like a workout, I really enjoyed the writing style.
This was my favorite of the SJP summer reading books. I’m kicking myself for not reading this when I taught in Poughkeepsie!!