The Crossover
(Libby/OverDrive eAudiobook)

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Description

Series streaming now on Disney+, with executive producers including NBA great LeBron James!

The Newbery Medal and Coretta Scott King Award–winning middle grade bestseller! Basketball and heartache share the court in this slam-dunk novel in verse.

“With a bolt of lightning on my kicks . . . The court is SIZZLING. My sweat is DRIZZLING. Stop all that quivering. ’Cuz tonight I’m delivering,” raps twelve-year-old Josh Bell. Thanks to their dad, he and his twin brother, Jordan, are kings on the court. But Josh has more than basketball in his blood—he’s got mad beats, too, which help him find his rhythm when it’s all on the line.

In this fast and furious middle grade novel of family and brotherhood from Kwame Alexander, Josh and Jordan must come to grips with growing up on and off the court to realize breaking the rules comes at a terrible price, as their story's heart-stopping climax proves a game-changer for the entire family.

More Details

Format
eAudiobook
Edition
Unabridged
Street Date
06/01/2014
Language
English
ISBN
9781490627588

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Also in this Series

  • El crossover (Crossover (Kwame Alexander) Volume 1) Cover
  • Booked (Crossover (Kwame Alexander) Volume 2) Cover
  • Rebound (Crossover (Kwame Alexander) Volume Prequel) Cover

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Similar Series From Novelist

NoveList provides detailed suggestions for series you might like if you enjoyed this book. Suggestions are based on recommendations from librarians and other contributors.
In both of these candid, character-driven, own voices series, athletic African American teens experience trials and triumphs on and off the court (Crossover) and the running track (Track). The Track books are traditional novels, while the Crossover books are novels in verse. -- Summer Edward
Both series combine basketball court action with characters kids can really care about. Crossover is a family story written in verse; Streetball Crew is in prose and adds a mystery element. -- Autumn Winters
These series have the genre "sports fiction"; the subjects "child basketball players," "basketball," and "children of divorced parents"; and characters that are "authentic characters."
These series have the genres "african american fiction" and "sports fiction"; the subjects "child basketball players," "african americans," and "basketball"; and include the identity "black."
These series have the appeal factors emotionally intense and hopeful, and they have the genres "african american fiction" and "novels in verse"; the subjects "african americans," "fathers and sons," and "bullies and bullying"; and include the identity "black."
These series have the appeal factors angst-filled and first person narratives, and they have the genres "realistic fiction" and "sports fiction"; and the subjects "child basketball players," "twin brothers," and "basketball."
These series have the appeal factors own voices, and they have the genre "sports fiction"; and the subjects "child basketball players," "boys," and "north american people."
These series have the appeal factors emotionally intense and own voices, and they have the genres "african american fiction" and "realistic fiction"; the subjects "african americans" and "siblings"; and include the identity "black."
These series have the appeal factors own voices and first person narratives, and they have the genres "african american fiction" and "realistic fiction"; the subjects "african americans," "children of divorced parents," and "blended families"; include the identity "black"; and characters that are "authentic characters" and "sympathetic characters."

Similar Titles From NoveList

NoveList provides detailed suggestions for titles you might like if you enjoyed this book. Suggestions are based on recommendations from librarians and other contributors.
NoveList recommends "Track (Jason Reynolds)" for fans of "Crossover (Kwame Alexander)". Check out the first book in the series.
Both of these emotionally intense, character-rich, own voices novels-in-verse focus on active, believable young teenage Black boys as they struggle with changing relationships with family and friends, which include death. -- NoveList Advisor
These novels are a slam dunk for basketball fans who enjoy moving, character-driven stories about middle school boys balancing sports with family life and school. Short is prose told in alternating voices; The Crossover is a novel in verse. -- NoveList Contributor
Although Josh (Crossover) and Garvey (Garvey's Choice) have opposite opinions about sports, both are shaped by their relationships with their dads and siblings. Page-turning poetry will grab readers' attention in both realistic, moving stories. -- Rebecca Honeycutt
These books have the genre "sports fiction"; and the subjects "child basketball players," "middle schools," and "basketball."
There's drama both on and off the court for the basketball-playing twin brothers in each of these realistic, character-driven reads. The Crossover is written in energetic free verse; Athlete vs. Mathlete is the first in a series. -- Rebecca Honeycutt
Though Training Camp features fantasy elements and The Crossover is realistic, both of these compelling basketball stories follow tweens who overcome tough obstacles on and off the court -- Stephen Ashley
These books have the genres "sports fiction" and "african american fiction"; and the subjects "child basketball players," "coping," and "seventh-grade boys."
With strong attachments to Chicago sports teams, affluent, athletic middle school boys deal with peer and family issues, including an imperiled parent, in these moving own voices novels-in-verse with literary allusions. Crossover's Josh and Jordan are Black; Kareem is Syrian American. -- NoveList Advisor
These books have the appeal factors own voices and first person narratives, and they have the genres "realistic fiction" and "african american fiction"; the subjects "african americans," "american people," and "north american people"; include the identity "black"; and characters that are "authentic characters" and "sympathetic characters."
In each of these engaging, authentic books, middle school guys use basketball as a way to help them make sense of tough situations at home and at school. Both stories combine honest emotional heft with page-turning sports action. -- Rebecca Honeycutt
These novels will resonate with sports fans who appreciate an emotionally intense read. Both books have characters from athletic families whose interest in basketball (The Crossover) and football (Final Season) gets overshadowed by their fathers' worsening health. -- Basia Wilson

Similar Authors From NoveList

NoveList provides detailed suggestions for other authors you might want to read if you enjoyed this book. Suggestions are based on recommendations from librarians and other contributors.
Renowned poets Benjamin Zephaniah and Kwame Alexander write moving, musically inspired stories for young people. Their lyrical, character-driven books star culturally diverse young protagonists who face a variety of disadvantages but ultimately overcome adversity. -- Catherine Coles
Although Mike Lupica makes sports his subject a bit more often than Kwame Alexander, both pen action-packed sports fiction for middle schoolers starring authentic characters kids can care about. -- Autumn Winters
These authors are known for their witty, thought-provoking work across many genres and age groups. They both write inventive picture and chapter books for young readers as well as lyrical memoirs for adults. -- CJ Connor
These authors' works have the appeal factors emotionally intense, and they have the genres "african american fiction" and "poetry"; the subjects "african americans," "fathers and sons," and "bullies and bullying"; illustrations that are "colorful illustrations"; and characters that are "authentic characters" and "sympathetic characters."
These authors' works have the appeal factors emotionally intense, and they have the subjects "african americans" and "preteen boys."
These authors' works have the genre "african american fiction"; the subjects "african americans," "fathers and sons," and "middle schools"; and characters that are "authentic characters."
These authors' works have the appeal factors emotionally intense and first person narratives, and they have the genre "african american fiction"; the subjects "african americans," "north american people," and "schools"; and include the identity "black."

Published Reviews

Booklist Review

The Bell twins are stars on the basketball court and comrades in life. While there are some differences Josh shaves his head and Jordan loves his locks both twins adhere to the Bell basketball rules: In this game of life, your family is the court, and the ball is your heart. With a former professional basketball player dad and an assistant principal mom, there is an intensely strong home front supporting sports and education in equal measures. When life intervenes in the form of a hot new girl, the balance shifts and growing apart proves painful. An accomplished author and poet, Alexander eloquently mashes up concrete poetry, hip-hop, a love of jazz, and a thriving family bond. The effect is poetry in motion. It is a rare verse novel that is fundamentally poetic rather than using this writing trend as a device. There is also a quirky vocabulary element that adds a fun intellectual note to the narrative. This may be just the right book for those hard-to-match youth who live for sports or music or both.--Bush, Gail Copyright 2014 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
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Publisher's Weekly Review

Josh Bell, known on and off the court by the nickname Filthy McNasty, doesn't lack self-confidence, but neither does he lack the skills to back up his own mental in-game commentary: "I rise like a Learjet-/ seventh-graders aren't supposed to dunk./ But guess what?/ I snatch the ball out of the air and/ SLAM!/ YAM! IN YOUR MUG!" Josh is sure that he and his twin brother, JB, are going pro, following in the footsteps of their father, who played professional ball in Europe. But Alexander (He Said, She Said) drops hints that Josh's trajectory may be headed back toward Earth: his relationship with JB is strained by a new girl at school, and the boys' father health is in increasingly shaky territory. The poems dodge and weave with the speed of a point guard driving for the basket, mixing basketball action with vocabulary-themed poems, newspaper clippings, and Josh's sincere first-person accounts that swing from moments of swagger-worthy triumph to profound pain. This verse novel delivers a real emotional punch before the final buzzer. Ages 9-12. Agent: East West Literary Agency. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
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School Library Journal Review

Gr 6-10-Twins Josh and Jordan are junior high basketball stars, thanks in large part to the coaching of their dad, a former professional baller who was forced to quit playing for health reasons, and the firm, but loving support of their assistant-principal mom. Josh, better known as Filthy McNasty, earned his nickname for his enviable skills on the court: ".when Filthy gets hot/He has a SLAMMERIFIC SHOT." In this novel in verse, the brothers begin moving apart from each other for the first time. Jordan starts dating the "pulchritudinous" Miss Sweet Tea, and Josh has a tough time keeping his jealousy and feelings of abandonment in control. Alexander's poems vary from the pulsing, aggressive beats of a basketball game ("My shot is F L O W I N G, Flying, fluttering.. ringaling and SWINGALING/Swish. Game/over") to the more introspective musings of a child struggling into adolescence ("Sit beside JB at dinner. He moves./Tell him a joke. He doesn't even smile..Say I'm sorry/but he won't listen"). Despite his immaturity, Josh is a likable, funny, and authentic character. Underscoring the sports and the fraternal tension is a portrait of a family that truly loves and supports one another. Alexander has crafted a story that vibrates with energy and heart and begs to be read aloud. A slam dunk.-Kiera Parrott, School Library Journal. (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
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Horn Book Review

Josh and Jordan (JB), identical twin sons of former basketball phenom Chuck "Da Man" Bell, are ball legends themselves, and they aren't yet thirteen; Josh is the only middle schooler around who can dunk, JB has a mean three-point shot, and together they're a well-oiled machine on the court. But then things start to change, as they tend to do at their age: JB gets a girlfriend, and before Josh knows it, their relationship is strained to the point of a mid-game altercation that lands him benched for weeks. On top of that, their mother frets constantly over Dad's poor health, and the boys begin to worry, too. Josh's first-person verse narration is a combination of exciting play-by-play game details, insightful middle-school observations, and poignant meditations on sibling dynamics and familial love. Since poet Alexander has the swagger and cool confidence of a star player and the finesse of a perfectly in-control ball-handler, wordplay and alliteration roll out like hip-hop lyrics, and the use of concrete forms and playful font changes keep things dynamic: "SWOOP in / to the finish with a fierce finger roll / Straight in the hole: / Swoooooooooooosh." Alexander brings the novel-in-verse format to a fresh audience with this massively appealing package for reluctant readers, athletes especially. katrina hedeen (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
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Kirkus Book Review

Basketball-playing twins find challenges to their relationship on and off the court as they cope with changes in their lives. Josh Bell and his twin, Jordan, aka JB, are stars of their school basketball team. They are also successful students, since their educator mother will stand for nothing else. As the two middle schoolers move to a successful season, readers can see their differences despite the sibling connection. After all, Josh has dreadlocks and is quiet on court, and JB is bald and a trash talker. Their love of the sport comes from their father, who had also excelled in the game, though his championship was achieved overseas. Now, however, he does not have a job and seems to have health problems the parents do not fully divulge to the boys. The twins experience their first major rift when JB is attracted to a new girl in their school, and Josh finds himself without his brother. This novel in verse is rich in character and relationships. Most interesting is the family dynamic that informs so much of the narrative, which always reveals, never tells. While Josh relates the story, readers get a full picture of major and minor players. The basketball action provides energy and rhythm for a moving story. Poet Alexander deftly reveals the power of the format to pack an emotional punch. (Verse fiction. 9-12)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
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Booklist Reviews

The Bell twins are stars on the basketball court and comrades in life. While there are some differences—Josh shaves his head and Jordan loves his locks—both twins adhere to the Bell basketball rules: In this game of life, your family is the court, and the ball is your heart. With a former professional basketball player dad and an assistant principal mom, there is an intensely strong home front supporting sports and education in equal measures. When life intervenes in the form of a hot new girl, the balance shifts and growing apart proves painful. An accomplished author and poet, Alexander eloquently mashes up concrete poetry, hip-hop, a love of jazz, and a thriving family bond. The effect is poetry in motion. It is a rare verse novel that is fundamentally poetic rather than using this writing trend as a device. There is also a quirky vocabulary element that adds a fun intellectual note to the narrative. This may be just the right book for those hard-to-match youth who live for sports or music or both. Copyright 2014 Booklist Reviews.

Copyright 2014 Booklist Reviews.
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Publishers Weekly Reviews

Josh Bell, known on and off the court by the nickname Filthy McNasty, doesn't lack self-confidence, but neither does he lack the skills to back up his own mental in-game commentary: "I rise like a Learjet—/ seventh-graders aren't supposed to dunk./ But guess what?/ I snatch the ball out of the air and/ SLAM!/ YAM! IN YOUR MUG!" Josh is sure that he and his twin brother, JB, are going pro, following in the footsteps of their father, who played professional ball in Europe. But Alexander (He Said, She Said) drops hints that Josh's trajectory may be headed back toward Earth: his relationship with JB is strained by a new girl at school, and the boys' father health is in increasingly shaky territory. The poems dodge and weave with the speed of a point guard driving for the basket, mixing basketball action with vocabulary-themed poems, newspaper clippings, and Josh's sincere first-person accounts that swing from moments of swagger-worthy triumph to profound pain. This verse novel delivers a real emotional punch before the final buzzer. Ages 9–12. Agent: East West Literary Agency. (Mar.)

[Page ]. Copyright 2014 PWxyz LLC

Copyright 2014 PWxyz LLC
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School Library Journal Reviews

Gr 6–10—Twins Josh and Jordan are junior high basketball stars, thanks in large part to the coaching of their dad, a former professional baller who was forced to quit playing for health reasons, and the firm, but loving support of their assistant-principal mom. Josh, better known as Filthy McNasty, earned his nickname for his enviable skills on the court: "…when Filthy gets hot/He has a SLAMMERIFIC SHOT." In this novel in verse, the brothers begin moving apart from each other for the first time. Jordan starts dating the "pulchritudinous" Miss Sweet Tea, and Josh has a tough time keeping his jealousy and feelings of abandonment in control. Alexander's poems vary from the pulsing, aggressive beats of a basketball game ("My shot is F L O W I N G, Flying, fluttering…. ringaling and SWINGALING/Swish. Game/over") to the more introspective musings of a child struggling into adolescence ("Sit beside JB at dinner. He moves./Tell him a joke. He doesn't even smile….Say I'm sorry/but he won't listen"). Despite his immaturity, Josh is a likable, funny, and authentic character. Underscoring the sports and the fraternal tension is a portrait of a family that truly loves and supports one another. Alexander has crafted a story that vibrates with energy and heart and begs to be read aloud. A slam dunk.—Kiera Parrott, School Library Journal.

[Page 132]. (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
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Citations

APA Citation, 7th Edition (style guide)

Alexander, K., & Allen, C. (2014). The Crossover (Unabridged). Recorded Books, Inc..

Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)

Alexander, Kwame and Corey Allen. 2014. The Crossover. Recorded Books, Inc.

Chicago / Turabian - Humanities (Notes and Bibliography) Citation, 17th Edition (style guide)

Alexander, Kwame and Corey Allen. The Crossover Recorded Books, Inc, 2014.

Harvard Citation (style guide)

Alexander, K. and Allen, C. (2014). The crossover. Unabridged Recorded Books, Inc.

MLA Citation, 9th Edition (style guide)

Alexander, Kwame, and Corey Allen. The Crossover Unabridged, Recorded Books, Inc., 2014.

Note! Citations contain only title, author, edition, publisher, and year published. Citations should be used as a guideline and should be double checked for accuracy. Citation formats are based on standards as of August 2021.

Copy Details

CollectionOwnedAvailableNumber of Holds
Libby110

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