Margin Notes

LeBron James and Andrea William’s newest release We Are Family is the story of five middle school students with different struggles and circumstance bound together by their love of basketball. Jayden Carr is a talented player with dreams of basketball scholarships, but also of pulling his family out of poverty. Tamika Beck is a young female player determined to show Hoop Group how archaic their gender rules are while finally getting the respect she deserves from her father. Anthony Pierson needs this group to keep him out of the trouble that is fueled by his family situation. Dexter Dingal needs a place he finally belongs. And Chris King thinks he needs Hoop Group so he can finally be named captain, but actually needs something much different.

Grade 7 is the year that the middle school basketball players have been waiting for – it’s the year they can finally join Hoop Group – the group that can open all the doors they hope to walk through in the future. But the coach is sick, and Hoop Group is in trouble, and the young basketball players are feeling defeated. With equal doses of hope and commitment, these young ballers come together to try to do the impossible, and end of learning about much more than just the game of basketball.

Although a story about basketball, it is also a story of hope. LeBron James says in his letter to readers that he wrote this story because he hopes everyone who reads it “…knows that nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it”. This is a great story for any middle school reader who needs some hope in their lives.