Shook

Randall, Julian. Shook

August 4, 2026 by Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

In this novel in verse, Malik Page lives on the West Side of Chicago with his mother and father. He loves basketball and hopes to be a first pick for the NBA. His mother is an English teacher who has been tutoring ever since her school shut down, and his father is a coach who didn't quite go pro. He plays for the Home Grove team, and manages to win an important game, but falls and breaks his leg. His parents take him to a hospital on the North Side to get better medical attention, and Malik, whose father gave him the nickname "Shake", worries that the extra expense will be a problem for his family. He can't play for six weeks, and fears that even though he'll be ready for the next season, he won't be able to make varsity. He meets a friend of his uncle's who has gone on to be a physical therapist, and gives him some exercises to do. Shake struggles with his injury; it impacts his relationships with his friends, especially Kyla, and he starts to suffer from panic attacks. He gets angry with his teacher, Mr. Pasquale, who can never call him the correct name, and ends up being suspended after he fights with him. Shake's parents have him see a therapist, Kendrick, who helps him a lot and is generally pretty cool. He still has some panic attacks, but eventually makes up with Kyla, who was struggling with issues of her own. Shake finds out that his uncle and some other relatives also struggled with anxiety 

Strengths: Having an injury in middle school and not being able to play the sport of one's choosing can be devastating for tweens, so this is an interesting premise for a book. Many of my own students think that they can have a career playing pro sports, so they will definitely root for Shake. I love that his family is intact (the parents are both alive!) and supportive of him, making sure that he gets needed therapy even though they are struggling financially. There is a decent amount of basketball in the story, and the Chicago Bulls are mentioned frequently. Readers who want to meet characters with anxiety disorders and panic attacks will be intrigued by how these impact Shake and his recuperation. It was nice to see Shake make a responsible decision about his participation in sports at the end of the book. 
Weaknesses: It seemed a bit odd that Shake's mother wasn't able to find a job. I would think there is a teacher shortage is Chicago like there is everywhere else. Shake says at one point that "Nobody likes being in middle school, not even the teachers", but I certainly like being in middle school! 
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who like Reynold's Stuntboy, In the Meantime or the mix of mental health issues and sports in Stroman's The Grip. Comparisons will be made between this and Alexander's The Crossover, but this doesn't have the strong sense of poetry or the intriguing plot of that book.