to encourage boys to read books with girls as the main character. It's become easier to get boys to read these; this year, with the resurgence in interest in romance books amongst 6th graders, I've even seen girls recommending the
Ms. Yingling: We know from Wish I Was a Baller that you were a big writer even in your teens, but what kind of a reader were you? What were some of your favorite books?
Mr. Shah: I was a voracious reader from the time I was a kid. One of my earliest memories is my mom reading me a book called The Clown-Arounds by Joanna Cole, which is still one of my favorite childhood books. I also remember devouring everything at the school book fair. If it had sports in it, I wanted it.
One of my first big obsessions was the Iron Mask baseball series by Robert Montgomery. It was five books long, and it felt impossible to track them all down. Other kids would get different books in the series, and I would literally salivate as I watched them read what I hadn’t found yet. That series made me realize how powerful sports stories could be.
I also loved Matt Christopher books, of course, but Judy Blume was my all-time favorite growing up. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing and Superfudge really opened up the world of middle grade for me. My fourth-grade teacher, Ms. Runyon, would read those books aloud to our class, and I was completely hooked. I think that was the moment I knew I wanted to be a writer.
As I got older, I fell in love with journalism. I idolized writers from magazines, especially SLAM Magazine. There was a writer named Scoop Jackson whose work I followed religiously. Later, he actually became a mentor to me when I started writing for SLAM, which felt surreal.
In high school, I discovered The Great Gatsby and became obsessed with F. Scott Fitzgerald. That opened up a whole new world of literature for me. All of these voices shaped who I am as a writer today.
My readers LOVE sports books, but many teachers and librarians don’t. Why should adults pick up more middle grade books about sports?
This question has baffled me for a long time. Right now, more kids are participating in youth sports than ever before. And yet, there is a huge lack of sports books for this age group.
I can’t tell you how many librarians have approached me, desperately looking to fill their sports sections. Kids are craving these stories. They want to see themselves on the page. They play these sports. They live these experiences. Some of the most powerful stories happen on courts, fields, diamonds, and rinks.
Reading between the ages of eight and twelve is foundational. Sports are foundational, too. They teach teamwork, failure, resilience, confidence, leadership, and identity. What better way to explore those lessons than through stories?
I once read a study that of the middle-grade books published in 2024, fewer than two percent are sports-related. That is a huge missed opportunity. We are abandoning an entire group of readers, many of whom already feel disconnected from books.
This is not just about boys. Girls need more sports books, too. Women’s sports are exploding right now. Volleyball is the fastest-growing high school sport. Flag football is becoming massive. Kids deserve to see themselves represented in all aspects of the game.
(Sam Subity's overview of genres does indeed reveal sports at the bottom of publisher releases in 2024.)
Can you tell my readers what sports you played, or what your relationship with sports was? Did you ever have girls on your team?
I played soccer, baseball, basketball, and tennis. Was I great at any of them? No. But in my head, I still dream about playing in the NBA.
Sports were foundational to who I was. I started as a fan before I ever became a player. I loved football, hockey, baseball, and basketball. I grew up rooting for the Mets, Knicks, Rangers, and Jets, which I inherited from my dad. He got to see them succeed. I have mostly suffered ever since. Thank goodness, I’m a Florida Gator.
In middle school, I knew I probably was not going to make the school team. I actually got cut at the very end, which was heartbreaking. But that experience pushed me toward sports journalism. I wanted to tell the stories of the kids who played the game.
That passion grew. I thought, why stop at high school? Why not cover the NBA? Nothing was going to stop me. That mindset eventually led me to write for major sports magazines while I was still a teenager.
I always had girls on my teams, and they were often the best athletes. On the field, everything felt equal. It was incredible to see so many of them grow into amazing players. Watching women’s sports explode now feels very full circle to me.
In a lot of middle grade books, at least one parent is killed off. You have Raam’s parents and his grandparents really involved in his life. What do you think the inclusion of close-knit families adds to a story?
I grew up in an Indian-American household, and extended family was always around. Uncles, aunties, cousins, friends of the family. My house was never quiet.
My parents worked a lot, but they were always there for me. They dropped me off at school. They picked me up from practice. Now that I have my own kids, I see how lucky they are to have their grandparents actively involved in their lives, too.
I wanted to show that kind of family dynamic on the page because it shapes who we are. Especially for first-generation kids, grandparents and extended family are often the bridge to culture, tradition, and history. They pass down stories, values, food, language, and meaning.
It adds texture to a story. It adds flavor, color, and emotional depth. Family is just as important to shaping a character as anything that happens on the outside.
Your Hoop Con series includes a great female character, Trina. What inspired you to include her in such a supportive and important role?
I love that you asked about Trina because she is my favorite character in the series.
In my own family, my dad is the youngest sibling, and my mom is the oldest. That means I have aunts and uncles who are younger than me, and nephews and nieces who are older than me. I always had older relatives close to my age who felt like siblings.
I was the oldest kid in my immediate family, so those cousins became my support system. I spent summers with them in New Jersey and Chicago. I wanted Raam to have that same kind of relationship.
Trina is technically his aunt, but she feels like an older sister. I loved playing with that dynamic. I also wanted to create a strong female role model for him.
Watching the impact Kobe Bryant had on girls through his daughter made me realize how important representation is. With the growth of women’s basketball and women’s sports, I wanted Raam to have someone cool, confident, and supportive to look up to.
We need more characters like Trina. Strong, empowered, and unapologetically themselves.
Are there any middle grade books with girls as the main character that you would recommend to students in grades six through eight?
There are so many great ones. Some of my favorites include:
These are all fantastic sports stories with female protagonists. (Ms. Yingling: I think so, too!)
One of my students, Ismail, wants to know if there will be a part two of Wish I Was a Baller. Can you share what books you might have coming out in the future?
That is such a great question. Right now, there are no official plans for a direct sequel to Wish I Was a Baller. That does not mean it will never happen.
What I am really excited about is the idea of a prequel that explores my childhood growing up in the gas station and convenience store business. That world shaped me in so many ways, and I would love to explore it more.
I also have ideas for another middle-grade sports graphic novel that is a little more fantasy-based. And I absolutely want to keep writing sports stories, whether that is basketball, baseball, football, or something else.
Youth sports is such a powerful space, and it is a privilege to write stories for kids. There are so many more adventures left to tell.
