*A 2007 American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults

REBOUND has been included in The Ultimate Teen Book Guide (Walker and Company, New York, 2008)



Kieran Scott (January 2008)
(Author of I Was A Non-Blonde Cheerleader).
Raymond Wisniewski's high school is divided along racial lines, but Ray- a Polish kid who loves basketball- never really thinks about his African-American classmates until he tries out for the basketball team. On the first day of tryouts, he's surprised when he finds himself relieved to see a couple of other white guys in the gym. Ray never remotely considered himself to be racist, but over the course of this honest and insightful novel, he'll be forced to take a hard look at his own beliefs, and those of his family and friends.

Bob Krech has written an engrossing story about a complex topic, touching on the many shades of racism and treating his characters with compassion and understanding. The book is also jam-packed with real-time basketball action, fun characters, new friendships, and even a sweet love story.

Library Media Connection (February 2007)
Ray lives where being a white Polish kid is something to be proud of, where the white kids wrestle and the black kids play basketball. But what Ray wants more than anything else is to play basketball. Two years in a row he is cut from the team, but that doesn’t keep him from trying out again. This time there is a new coach. He makes the team, but doesn’t anticipate that one of the black players will resent him simply because he is white. As the story unfolds, Ray experiences prejudice on both sides. On the court he struggles with the anger of his black teammates, and off the court he struggles with the attitudes of his best friends and his parents. Ray’s growth is shown as he plays ball and as he deals with the racial tension. It is his final decision to choose friendship over color that shows sometimes you can’t judge the world in simply black or white. The on-court action and off-court action will keep reluctant readers engrossed in the story. There is some romance, plenty of ball playing, and and plenty of controversy to keep readers to the very end. Recommended. -Karen Scott, Media Specialist, Thompson Middle School, Alabaster, Alabama.

Horn Book (Spring 2007)
In Ray Wisniewski’s New Jersey town, Polish American boys are expected to wrestle, African Americans to play basketball. When Ray makes the basketball team his senior ear, he’s one of the few non-African American players. Throughout the story, layers of racism are revealed in unexpected places—in Ray’s family, his friends, and himself. The basketball action and adolescent dialogue are authentic, providing a solid background for its ambitious topic.

Teen Underground – Charleston County Library System, Charleston, South Carolina (June 2007)
For fans of Black and White by Paul Volponi, this is a sports book that’ll engage parts of your brain besides the bit that keeps score. Ray Wisniewski has a dream; he wants to play basketball. But in Ray’s high school, the Polish kids wrestle and the black kids play basketball, and there are no exceptions. In Ray’s senior year, though, there’s a new coach who doesn’t mind shaking up the existing system. Now, as the only white player on the team, Ray is going to learn a lot – about basketball, racism, and himself. Written with insight and honesty, this is way more than your average sports book.

TeensReadToo.com (April 2007)
Ray Wisniewski is growing up in the Polish-American town of Greenville, New Jersey. His game is basketball, but he is the minority. All the black kids play basketball. Ray’s supposed to be into wrestling like the white kids. Basketball – Ray lives and breathes basketball. He plays pick-up games and organized ball, whatever kind of game he can rustle up. His only disappointment is that he has never been able to make the varsity team. He tries out and plays his best, but Coach Malovic never picks him. Finally, during Ray’s senior year a new coach is hired, and Ray is suddenly one of the starting five. Another surprise is the attention Ray is getting from the cutest and most popular girl in school, Stacy. He never considered even talking to her—much less dating her—but his luck is changing. It isn’t until his first date with Stacy that Ray begins to realize that some people are bothered by the fact that he has perhaps crossed some sort of line by playing basketball instead of choosing the more “white” path of joining the wrestling team. Even Walter, his best friend, seems to be keeping his distance. Early on, REBOUND is non-stop basketball action. Bob Krech shows Ray playing constantly in an effort to make the high school team. As the book progresses, another dimension begins to appear—prejudice. Racial tension begins to rear its ugly head between players, friends, coaches, and parents. Ray finds out that not everyone is happy with just basketball and the competition on the court. The real world and its sometimes hateful nature cast a shadow over his success. Readers who enjoy good basketball play-by-play action will be hooked at the beginning of REBOUND. Hopefully, they will connect with Ray as a person, too, and stick around to see what lurks beneath the surface of the basketball action.
-Sally Kruger, aka “Readingjunky”
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