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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
If you are a big basketball fan, you will love this book.
Sadly I'm not that much into basketball, but was curious to read this novel. The story of Sooley, a young athlete from South Sudan who has potential, but needs a lot of work, but still gets the opportunity of a lifetime to play in a competition in the United States.
The story of Sooley's determination to succeed, the plights of his family back in South Sudan are what held my interest the most.
There is a section of about 100 pages in the middle of the book that focuses solely on the matches being played with a blow by blow description of each play. Now if you are a basketball afficionado then this is right up your alley - me not so much and I found my interest fading with the detailed descriptions of passes, shots, plays, tactics etc.
Once you get past that section, then the plot intensifies again with Sooley being presented with a number of challenges which will hugely impact his life.
I feel I wanted more detail about what Sooley's family was enduring, their daily struggles, and the impact of Sooley being in the US which would have given more insight and impact into the plight of these refugees.
Sadly I'm not that much into basketball, but was curious to read this novel. The story of Sooley, a young athlete from South Sudan who has potential, but needs a lot of work, but still gets the opportunity of a lifetime to play in a competition in the United States.
The story of Sooley's determination to succeed, the plights of his family back in South Sudan are what held my interest the most.
There is a section of about 100 pages in the middle of the book that focuses solely on the matches being played with a blow by blow description of each play. Now if you are a basketball afficionado then this is right up your alley - me not so much and I found my interest fading with the detailed descriptions of passes, shots, plays, tactics etc.
Once you get past that section, then the plot intensifies again with Sooley being presented with a number of challenges which will hugely impact his life.
I feel I wanted more detail about what Sooley's family was enduring, their daily struggles, and the impact of Sooley being in the US which would have given more insight and impact into the plight of these refugees.
Brutal. Grisham got me again! Great writing and even though I have no basketball knowledge, read this easily.
Okay I loved the concept but the execution was just meh. The ending was surprising in a bad way and I didn’t feel like the story lines were wrapped up very successfully
4.5 stars rounded down. I got really into this story and felt so drawn into each character.
This was my first and last John Grisham sports book. If you're a big basketball fan, you may love it, but I'm not a sports fan so it just wasn't the right book for me. I listened to it on audio and had a hard time keeping my mind from drifting away from the boring play-by-plays.
Also, I didn't like the big turning point in the story and the rest of it just seemed highly improbable. I'll be sticking to his legal thrillers from now on as I enjoy those much better.
Also, I didn't like the big turning point in the story and the rest of it just seemed highly improbable. I'll be sticking to his legal thrillers from now on as I enjoy those much better.
Was decent until the last 10 chapters. Major plot point just didn’t make sense
Enjoyed the beginning - Samuel Sooleymon’s life in South Sudan with his family. The detailed descriptions of basketball games was not for me. I don’t think the ending depicted the person Sooley was throughout the book. 3.5 stars
This book was fun, and then it wasn't. Ha! The ending was an unpleasant surprise but I liked the story.
dark
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes