Here are 100 books that Hoops fans have personally recommended if you like
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Despite playing precisely one year of competitive basketball myself, as a gangly sixth grader in the 1990s forced to play without her (desperately needed) glasses and capable of only granny-style free throws, I fell in love with the sport later in life as a superfan of my local college basketball team, the University of Cincinnati Bearcats. I’m forever interested in players as human beings, and the way forces from their off-court life affect the game and vice versa.
Body image issues affect so many of us, and it can feel particularly acute in the middle school years, when our bodies are undergoing so much change. Though it’s been decades, I palpably remember how strange my growth spurt felt from the inside and how it changed my confidence.
In Alyson Gerber’s excellent book, Sarah is used to excelling on the basketball court, but when the shots stop falling, she’s quick to blame her changing physique and takes matters into her own hands to rectify things by drastically altering her eating habits.
Gerber handles this material with empathy and compassion, never talking down to the reader or getting preachy. Whatever your gender (body image issues are hardly limited to girls), there’s so much to relate to in this story.
From beloved author Alyson Gerber comes another realistic contemporary novel perfect for fans of Judy Blume.
Sarah loves basketball more than anything. Crushing it on the court makes her feel like she matters. And it's the only thing that helps her ignore how much it hurts when her mom forgets to feed her. But lately Sarah can't even play basketball right. She's slower now and missing shots she should be able to make. Her body doesn't feel like it's her own anymore. She's worried that changing herself back to how she used to be is the only way she can…
Despite playing precisely one year of competitive basketball myself, as a gangly sixth grader in the 1990s forced to play without her (desperately needed) glasses and capable of only granny-style free throws, I fell in love with the sport later in life as a superfan of my local college basketball team, the University of Cincinnati Bearcats. I’m forever interested in players as human beings, and the way forces from their off-court life affect the game and vice versa.
It’s obvious from the first page that Barbara Carroll Roberts has spent hundreds (thousands?) of hours in stuffy gyms. Her know-how of the AAU circuit and the politics of competitive middle school basketball seep into the story in a way that will be recognized by current players.
I loved that aspect of the story, but even more, I loved the way this book honors the range of real-life issues affecting a player off the court, whether it’s the financial constraints due to being raised by a single parent or how differently a family tree project resonates when your dad is a sperm donor. Readers will find it impossible not to root for Nikki.
Nikki wants to be a basketball star... but between school stress, friend drama and babysitting woes, will she be able to make it in the big leagues?
Thirteen-year-old Nikki Doyle dreams of becoming a great basketball player like her WNBA idol, Mia McCall. Nikki has always been the best point guard in her county league and her dreams feel within reach when she's selected to play on an elite-level club team. But in a league with taller, stronger and faster girls, it turns out that Nikki is no longer the best point guard. In fact, she's no longer a point…
Despite playing precisely one year of competitive basketball myself, as a gangly sixth grader in the 1990s forced to play without her (desperately needed) glasses and capable of only granny-style free throws, I fell in love with the sport later in life as a superfan of my local college basketball team, the University of Cincinnati Bearcats. I’m forever interested in players as human beings, and the way forces from their off-court life affect the game and vice versa.
Every baller has a player they absolutely idolize, whether it’s someone who makes the Sportscenter highlight reels on the regular or the best dunker at their local basketball court. For Shot Clock’s Tony, it’s Dante, who took his AAU team to the championships twice. But when Dante is killed by a police officer, everything changes.
This book brings you all the exciting game action you’d expect from a book with that title and cover, but it’s also a story about grief and loss (a sweet spot for me, always) and the intersection of racial justice and sports. I can’t wait for the sequel coming out in fall 2024.
Former NBA All-Star Caron Butler and acclaimed author Justin A. Reynolds tip off the first book in a new middle grade series about a young boy trying to make his mark on an AAU basketball team coached by a former NBA star in his hometown. Perfect for fans of The Crossover and the Track series. A Junior Library Guild Selection!
Tony loves basketball. But the game changed recently when his best friend, Dante, a hoops phenom, was killed by a police officer. Tony hopes he can carry on Dante’s legacy by making the Sabres, the AAU basketball team Dante took…
Despite playing precisely one year of competitive basketball myself, as a gangly sixth grader in the 1990s forced to play without her (desperately needed) glasses and capable of only granny-style free throws, I fell in love with the sport later in life as a superfan of my local college basketball team, the University of Cincinnati Bearcats. I’m forever interested in players as human beings, and the way forces from their off-court life affect the game and vice versa.
I’m mixing it up here a little with a non-fiction title that I think a lot of middle school fans of the game of basketball would learn a TON from. Maraniss, the award-winning and best-selling author of Strong Inside, brings an incredible amount of research and detail to life in this story of the first Olympic women’s basketball team.
My mind was truly blown reading about how much the earliest women’s basketball players had to overcome to compete, from the paternalist physicians who couldn’t have known less about a woman’s athletic capacity if they tried to practical, financial considerations and beyond.
These women are my heroes, and I’m grateful to Maraniss for honoring their legacies with this book.
From the New York Times bestselling author of Strong Inside comes the inspirational true story of the birth of women’s Olympic basketball at the 1976 Summer Games and the ragtag team that put US women’s basketball on the map. Perfect for fans of Steve Sheinkin and Daniel James Brown.
A League of Their Own meets Miracle in the inspirational true story of the first US Women’s Olympic Basketball team and their unlikely rise to the top.
Twenty years before women’s soccer became an Olympic sport and two decades before the formation of the WNBA, the ’76 US women’s basketball team…
I am a Scottish writer who has been obsessed with soccer from an early age. I devour books, new or old, on any topic related to the game and have an extensive collection of books, old and new, that keeps outgrowing my bookshelves. I love learning more about the history of the game and especially new soccer cultures.
I’ve read this book 3-4 times, and every time I’ve picked up something new.
The writer focuses his entire history of the game on how the tactics have evolved from its beginnings to the modern day, showing how the global nature of the game created melting pots of ideas.
The book is peppered with interesting anecdotes and trivia, which I love, and made me a much more informed viewer of soccer matches.
In INVERTING THE PYRAMID, Jonathan Wilson pulls apart the finer details of the world's game, tracing the global history of tactics, from modern pioneers right back to the beginning when chaos reigned. Along the way, he looks at the lives of great players and thinkers who shaped the sport and probes why the English, in particular, have 'proved themselves unwilling to grapple with the abstract'.
This fifth-anniversary edition of a football modern classic has been fully updated to include an investigation of the modern-day Barcelona and how their style of play developed from Total Football, which itself was an evolution…
Ever since I started playing Strat-O-Matic baseball as a 13-year-old and then realized that they actually pay people to write about Major League Baseball, it’s been my dream to be a baseball beat writer. I’ve been lucky enough to do it for 25 years. I’ve seen thousands of baseball games and I’ve spent thousands of hours talking to players, managers, coaches, and executives about the sport, but I still learn things from every baseball book I read. Hopefully these books teach you something and help you enjoy the game more.
If you’re a Shohei Ohtani fan, you may also be a Los Angeles Angels fan, which means you are probably interested in Joe Maddon.
This book is not just Maddon’s ranting against the way baseball has changed over his 40-plus years in the sport, it also includes third-person narrative from Verducci, who interviewed other managers to get their perspective. For example, Astros manager A.J. Hinch detailed his pitching decisions in the 2019 World Series. That was one of my favorite parts of the book.
No one sees baseball like Joe Maddon. He sees it through his trademark glasses and irrepressible wit. Raised in the "shot and beer" town of Hazleton, PA, and forged by 15 years in the minors, Maddon over 19 seasons in Tampa Bay, Chicago, and Anaheim has become one of the most successful, most colorful, and most quoted managers in Major League Baseball. He is a workplace culture expert, having engineered two of the most stunning turnarounds in the past quarter century: taking the Rays from the worst record in baseball one year to the World Series the next and leading…
After 37 years of being undiagnosed with ADHD, I was so grateful to get my diagnosis! Once I had an inkling that I had ADHD, I began devouring books about it :-) The books in this list are five of many that have helped me understand myself and my brain, and I want to help others have access to them and to the inspiring, affirming, and empowering self-knowledge they provide! These books will help you figure out if you might have an ADHD brain and then, from there, help you work with and celebrate that brain.
This book is a lovely and practical guide since it communicates information about ADHD easily using visuals. It is an excellent choice for someone who wants to learn more about ADHD and is a visual learner! I also enjoy this book's "day in the life" theme, where it tackles ADHD-related issues and challenges as they arise throughout a day in the life of an ADHDer.
An inclusive guide to ADHD that explores its diverse types, symptoms, diagnoses, and misconceptions, and shares how to work with your ADHD brain to fully understand yourself.
Diagnosed at 29, Alice Gendron offers full and supportive insight into life with ADHD, addresses common challenges and hurdles, and provides tips and ADHD hacks that will help you to get things done and live a more peaceful daily life. This illustrated and informative guide is a must-have for anyone looking to better understand ADHD and how to thrive with ADHD.
Through Gendron’s motivational voice and relatable illustrations, The Mini ADHD Coach will…
After 37 years of being undiagnosed with ADHD, I was so grateful to get my diagnosis! Once I had an inkling that I had ADHD, I began devouring books about it :-) The books in this list are five of many that have helped me understand myself and my brain, and I want to help others have access to them and to the inspiring, affirming, and empowering self-knowledge they provide! These books will help you figure out if you might have an ADHD brain and then, from there, help you work with and celebrate that brain.
I love this book by well-known YouTuber Jessica McCabe. It summarizes some of the key ideas that the author shares in her YouTube channel. What remains is an inspiring, empathetic, and insightful guide to having an ADHD brain. As Jessica tells us, don’t just try harder; try different.
'Jessica McCabe changed my life for the better with her kind, bright and thoroughly researched ADHD videos - and now with her book, she just might change yours too' KAT BROWN, AUTHOR OF IT'S NOT A BLOODY TREND: UNDERSTANDING LIFE AS AN ADHD ADULT
'The world of ADHD has been waiting for this book' DR EDWARD HALLOWELL, NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING CO-AUTHOR OF ADHD 2.0 AND DRIVEN TO DISTRACTION
**From the host and creator of the award-winning HOW TO ADHD YouTube channel**
In How to ADHD, Jessica McCabe reveals the insights and tools that have…
I have been interested in leadership style since my teenage years. My father was a leader in a retailing organization, and I was entranced by behaviors that seemed to connect with others and those that did not. As I grew older, I started to think about leadership style behaviors and models that might capture the most effective ones. While I recognize that leadership needs vary based on industry, scope, and tenure, I do believe that we all should know the leadership styles that are important to us to the extent that we can describe them if we are asked to do so.
As a leader and leadership coach, understanding great ways to lead others is critical. This book focuses on key behaviors that we all need to be successfully led by others. The book mainly focuses on how to lead and coach others with compassion, as this is not about you; it is about the other person.
While most do not think of this daily, our personal goals and visions lead regularly–they help define what we do. Ensuring you know the personal goals and vision of those whom you are leading is needed in order to effectively move them from where they are today to a new and better place.
Helping others is a good thing. Often, as a leader, manager, doctor, teacher, or coach, it's central to your job. But even the most well-intentioned efforts to help others can be undermined by a simple truth: We almost always focus on trying to "fix" people, correcting problems or filling the gaps between where they are and where we think they should be. Unfortunately, this doesn't work well, if at all, to inspire sustained learning or positive change.
There's a better way. In this powerful, practical book, emotional intelligence expert Richard Boyatzis and Weatherhead…
Growing up as a dyslexic kid with teenage parents and losing my dad at four, I spent my life searching for role models who turned their unique stories into something impactful. I’ve had the privilege of meeting all these incredible authors, learning about their journeys, and even calling a few of them friends. What sets them apart is their unwavering commitment to being real and transparent in their leadership. They don’t just lead—they use their experiences to make life better for the people they serve and to create positive change in the world around them. Their stories are proof that true leadership comes from authenticity and purpose.
This book is a powerful leadership manifesto that revolves around resilience and relentless positivity. Fleck’s philosophy is more than a slogan; it’s a mindset. He teaches leaders to embrace adversity, stay focused on the present, and keep moving forward, no matter the challenges.
Through deeply personal stories and proven strategies, Fleck shows how passion, sacrifice, and responsibility build success, not just in teams but in life. His approach challenges leaders to create a culture of enthusiasm and perseverance, motivating their people to pull together toward a common goal. If you’re looking to inspire your team and lead with a relentless, positive attitude, this book will give you the tools to do it.
P.J. Fleck uses his story of the pain and loss of a child to create a fundamentally new way of looking at a life philosophy that becomes a north star to those of us who more than occasionally…
Learn to live and lead with enthusiasm and optimism, impact your team, and transform your culture
In Row the Boat, Minnesota Golden Gophers Head Coach P.J. Fleck and bestselling author Jon Gordon deliver an inspiring message about what you can achieve when you approach life with a never-give-up philosophy. The book shows you how to choose enthusiasm and optimism as your guiding lights instead of being defined by circumstances and events outside of your control.
Discover how to put the three key components of row the boat into practice in your life:
