Capturing the essence and energy of a fast-paced sport like basketball in a book is a nearly impossible task, but Caldecott Medalist and bestselling author Kadir Nelson does just that in Basket Ball: The Story of the All-American Game—a standout companion to his acclaimed book on baseball, We Are the Ship.
Picking up this large-format book, which features orange endpapers and a cover resembling a ball’s nubbly rubber, practically feels like holding a basketball. Using chapter titles that feature game quarters (along with pregame, halftime, overtime and postgame), Nelson wonderfully spins the sport’s history, revealing intriguing tidbits while showing its evolution from segregated to integrated play and touching on the history of women’s leagues as well. Occasional narrative comments lend a storytelling feel to the text, with asides addressed to “my young friends” saying things like “Let me tell you, basketball has changed.” Indeed it has. Nelson is particularly eloquent when describing a player’s acrobatic moves, such as Michael Jordan’s, for instance: “Then he’d take off, twisting around defenders in the air, switching hands, rocking and cradling the ball like a baby, squeezing past defenders, and kissing the ball off the glass with a little English backspin on it so that it would bound into the basket—all while taking a few chomps on his bubblegum before he hit the ground.”
Renowned as a portrait artist, Nelson makes excellent use of white space to highlight players’ physicality in his stunning illustrations. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar leaps high, right arm extended, ready to dunk—right at the reader! Julius Erving’s mammoth right hand covers half a page and extends onto the next. A close-up shows Stephen Curry staring intently, his mouth guard hanging from his lips. These pages ooze personality and power, while equally fascinating illustrations show early versions of the game that look like a dress-up version of keep away, with players wearing leather shoes, long pants and belts.
Like the sport it so wonderfully chronicles, Basket Ball soars, capturing readers’ hearts with understanding and respect for this great American game.