Champion: A Graphic Novel
September 2, 2025 by Ten Speed Graphic
E ARC provided by Edelweiss plus
When Monk makes the poor decision to add graffitti to a rival school's mascot sign, he is caught. His coach and parents decide to implement some restorative justice, so he and his teammates have to clean up the paint (which is at least chalk based), and Monk has to write a report on basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The report can't be about his basketball playing, however, which confuses Monk. He seeks some help from people in his life, like Lark, who is on the girls' basketball team, and Sissy, who hires him to work in her store. All of the people in his life are a little concerned that he is laser focused on basketball, and no longer seems to have interest in art, even though he's very good. As he starts to delve into research on Abdul-Jabbar, he learns a lot about the Civil Rights movement, and the sports legend appears to him and has conversations. He even takes Monk back to different places and points in history so that he can understand how difficult the struggle was, and how Abdul-Jabbar was involved in a lot of things, not just basketball. Monk meets many road blocks; his notes and files on his computer disappear, his work hours are cut, and he angers Lark by not coming to her game. When he finally finishes his research, he decides to present it in a unique way, and with the help of his teammates, creates a mural about Abdul-Jabbar's life on the side of Sissy's store.
Strengths: I wanted to buy this graphic novel for this quote from the coach alone (from the E ARC): "Reality check: There are over 18,000 NCAA players, of which only about 4,000 are eligible for the NBA draft. Of those, only 60 will get drafted." Of course, Monk replies that he will be one of the 60. There are so many of my students who think that they have a chance to play professional ball, even though they aren't particularly talented, so maybe they will take away the message that it's important to have other plans for careers. My students are also ridiculously fond of LeBron James and ONLY want to read books about him, so this might tempt them to investigate another basketball player who has a wider impact than sports. This had an older, more serious illustration style to it that I enjoyed, and that will appeal to middle school and high school readers.
Weaknesses: This was fairly text dense, and I'm afraid that some of my readers might give up early on.
What I really think: I'm always interested in more sports graphic novels; the Jake Maddox ones are quite short but very popular. Champion is a little more complex and a good choice for readers who liked Soria and Williams' Who is the Man in the Air: Michael Jordan or Smith, Barnes, and Anyabwile's Victory. Stand!: Raising My Fist or Justice. Don't forget that Abdul-Jabbar also wrote the Sasquatch in the Paint series. Sadly, I didn't find out about book three until it was no longer available!
What I really think: I'm always interested in more sports graphic novels; the Jake Maddox ones are quite short but very popular. Champion is a little more complex and a good choice for readers who liked Soria and Williams' Who is the Man in the Air: Michael Jordan or Smith, Barnes, and Anyabwile's Victory. Stand!: Raising My Fist or Justice. Don't forget that Abdul-Jabbar also wrote the Sasquatch in the Paint series. Sadly, I didn't find out about book three until it was no longer available!
August 5, 2025 by Scholastic Inc.
Library Copy
Raam is now on the school team with Beast, the Moore twins, and Jason. He's glad to finally be able to play basketball, but feels like everyone is questioning his suitability to be on the team. His best friend Cake also seems angry, and the two don't spend much time together. There are problems at home as well. His mother's Indian dance studio is having financial difficulties, and losing students. His father is very worried about this, and interviewing for more stable jobs. When he gets one offer that means the family would have to relocate away from Orlando and Raam's grandparents who live there, Raam is very worried. Jason is very mean on the court, and causes several painful but not too serious injuries, but things do get a little better after Coach Demer has the boys doing some team building exercises at the Orlando Science Center. Raam gets more insight into Payton's life when the team stops by his house to pick up uniforms, and Payton's father can't stop talking about building his son's brand, and the clothing line and training app they are releasing. When Raam's mother loses another student, she asks Raam to help her studio compete, but Raam breaks his toe fooling around. Cake has to step in, but the mother's team wins, which helps the studio remain solvent. Raam's father decides not to take the job, and Raam is glad that he can remain at his school, near his grandparents, with his family intact.
Strengths: It's important for middle grade sports stories to have two things: lots of sports action, but also another plot to move things along. Raam's family issues are great for this; young readers will relate more to parents who are arguing and struggling with finances than they will to having all the parents die. My students love these books for all of the celebrity mentions, like when one of Raam's favorite players comes to his team's game, and the two later meet at an Indian dance festival that the Orlando Magic is hosting in its facility. Not sure whether this was a real player, but probably was; I don't pay attention, but my students certainly do. These are a great length and move along quickly. I like to suggest titles like this for book projects; kids who like sports do so much better on projects when they LIKE the book they are reading!
Weaknesses: There are a lot of references to current players and contemporary trends that will cause these books to be dated in a few years. It's a fine line to walk. I also don't understand why these books aren't available in hardback! Scholastic tends to publish its most popular titles only in paperback, which doesn't make sense to me at all. Luckily, prebinds of these books are available.
Weaknesses: There are a lot of references to current players and contemporary trends that will cause these books to be dated in a few years. It's a fine line to walk. I also don't understand why these books aren't available in hardback! Scholastic tends to publish its most popular titles only in paperback, which doesn't make sense to me at all. Luckily, prebinds of these books are available.
What I really think: Three books is perfect for a middle grade series, and I would love to see another sports title from Shah. It would be great if he could write standalone basketball books similar to the ones Fred Bowen writes (with his own insider, celebrity spin); I'd buy three of every single one!
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