A collection of poetry, the third volume in a series, provides young readers with a look at the drama, power, and competitive forces in a game of street-court basketball.
Gr 4-10-A poetry book for basketball lovers? You bet. Short Takes, the third in Smith's basketball trilogy, is a collection of a dozen short poems inspired by jazz, hip-hop, music videos, and movies. In his afterword, the author states that he's hoping to capture the moments that "leave an imprint on your mind like a snapshot." And he's mostly successful in this impressively dynamic work. The poems are illustrated with photos set on vividly colored pages, most of which contain echoes of larger images. For the most part, the selections rely on the visuals for their effectiveness. For example, "Shadows dance and prance/in the trance/of my opponent in the defensive stance" by itself is not as strong as when it is paired with its illustrations. Seen with them, it's a different story: the letters of the words have shadows of their own, and are placed on a blue page strung with musical notes and accompanied by hazy photos of a player and hoop. You see it as well as hear it, with a strength neither the pictures nor the words can carry alone. In that sense, this is a true picture book, one to be enjoyed by older readers-even those who may not normally choose a poetry title.-Lauralyn Persson, Wilmette Public Library, IL
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
The third in Charles R. Smith Jr.'s basketball trilogy (after Rimshots and Tall Tales), Short Takes: Fast-Break Basketball Poetry is, in the author's words, "about those little moments [in the game] that, for whatever reason, stand out in your mind and are significant." The jazzy but nervous graphic design pairs poems with lots of small-format photos and features high-contrast patterns, varying type in bold colors and nontraditional layouts.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Gr. 4-7. In his latest book, Smith offers another rhythmic, eye-popping celebration of basketball in the same photo-illustrated format as his
Rimshots: Basketball Pix, Rolls, and Rhythms (1999) and
Tall Tales: Six Amazing Basketball Dreams [BKL Mr 1 00]. Here he focuses on the flashes of sight and sound that capture lovers of the game: the squeak of sneakers on floor, the perfect wrist flick, trash talk overheard between players, the dance between offense and defense. Varying from tight haiku to free-form rap, the poems bounce with the rhythm of the ball, rhymes jumping from the line end to the middle and back again. As in the previous titles, hip, detailed snapshot photos from the court reinforce and, in some cases, supersede the imagery, drama, and beat of the words. Stylish and immediate, this is perfect for teachers seeking accessible material for poetry units and for young fans of the game.
Gillian EngbergCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
