The book, “Rebound” by Kwame Alexander illustrates the struggles of a young kid that plays basketball and is trying to find his groove in life and in the sport. This book is a prequel to the book, “The Crossover”. This book follows the father of Jordan and Josh Bell’s dad, Chuck “Da Man” Bell, and his journey through playing basketball in the 60s and 70s. Before being called Chuck “Da Man” Bell he was called Charlie Bell. Charlie lives with his mom because his dad died early on in his life. This changed Charlie, he would stop making fun of the little fights his parents used to have and overall just really started to take life more seriously. With his mom only being a single mom, Charlie's mom decides to send Charlie to his grandparents’ house for the summer for him to gain some new experience and get a different view on life. With Charlie’s grandfather being as wise and more knowledgeable about the world than Charlie, his grandfather uses basketball metaphors to get him over the pain, crying, and overall grief of his dad passing away Charlie loved basketball but unfortunately quit when his dad passed away. Playing basketball again was just too hard because whenever he steps on the court with his new shiny basketball shoes he just thinks of his dad. Even though Charlie swore that he would never play basketball again. His cousin, Roxie gradually starts to reteach Charlie the roots of basketball and tries to help him come back to basketball. To not only use basketball as a hobby but also as a coping mechanism. Throughout the whole story, it's always Charlie versus’s his grief. On his way to conquering this grieving state and trying to defeat it, he is always reminded of his dad in some way or another. When Charlie hears ambulance sirens he always rethinks of the moment of his dad in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. It’s these little things that make this book that much better because that’s how real life is. When you want something to go your way, you work and work, and right, as you get to that end goal something, comes at you like a Boeing 737. This book really changed me. Even though I have never been through something as worse or even on the same level as Charlie, there's a true sense of connection when you're reading each and every word. You see his pain, you see his problem and you relate to it so much because all of us have been in that very same moment. Whether it was a small or big problem. In conclusion, "Rebound" is a beautifully written novel that is both thought-provoking and emotionally powerful. This book is great for anyone at any age. It really captures the true meaning of life’s ups and downs which makes you feel like a character in the book that’s like a untalkable subconscious. No matter what you have been through whether it's been small or big this book finds a way to connect you to it. Even if you don't like basketball or even sports, it's a great book that has so much more to it on the inside after you peel those first couple of layers.
Sai K.
Comments