Slam!: Week of 2-3-14

Title: Slam!
Author: Walter D. Myers
Pages Read: 0-288
Prompt: Are the characters realistic (do they seem like they could be read people)? Why

or why not?

The characters in the story seem very real. It is about a teenager who his nickname is Slam. He grows up in a dangerous neighborhood where there is lots of bad things like drug dealing and stuff. He and his friends are the top basketball players in the area. This reminds me of Derrick Rose because he grew up in Englewood which is one of the more dangerous areas of Chicago.

So Slam and his friend promise to never sell drugs or get mixed up in anything. They both know they could have big futures. When Slam joins his new schools team he is not respected. This is because he is too flashy for the coach and the team. The team was terrible and Slam was great but coach wouldn't play him unless they were desperate because he didn't like Slam. Slam got really mad.Later on Slam learns to control his temper.

He figures out that basketball is a team sport and that he had to be less selfish. So he focuses more on winning with the team than him winning on his own. Then something happens that rattles Slam. He find out his friend has been drug dealing. He gets really upset. They known each other since they were little kids and he never thought he would do this. He thought he was smarter because they both could have big futures ahead of them. I like Slam because he is smart on and off the court. I enjoyed this book because it seemed realistic and it showed how some people can mess us their lives and others can have more perseverance and remember whats important.