A funny, inspiring, and brutally honest book about unfairness, racism, friendship, and pulling yourself up by the bootstraps. The characters are believable, and readers will sympathize with Junior's plight. This is a great story to introduce readers to the lives of those living on Native American reservations. Parents should know that there is a frank reference to masturbation and boy has his head sewn up without anasthaesia. There is also so swearing. Altogether, it's a great story for teens 14+!

I love how persistant the main character is in his pursuit of an education. I admire his work ethic and his ability to stick with school despite the many obstacles put in his path: racism, alcoholism, loss, poverty etc... He is amazing on the basketball court, not because he is a natural basketball player, but because he refuses to let anything get in the way of his success. It is his ability to stay focused in the midst of chaos that I find particularly inspiring. He never loses sight of his goals, and that embodies a wholesome vision of success that is endearing.

This is a powerful book relaying a hopeless and hopeful message, but it's a book that can't be read in solitude. Parents read with your teens and discuss -- there are incredible life lessons that are worth discussing!

it was not one of my fav books at all i mean it was ok but many other better books

I Think this book is absolutely appropriate for Teen from the age of 14+ because this is wen kids start to get an idea of how life is and you cant hide things from your kids you have to be very open so that they will trust you in the long run and listen when you give advise

Excellent book with a positive underlying message. The language is strong at times, as the author really attempts to capture an authentic 9th grader's voice. I think this is an appropriate choice for ages 13+ as long as kids have a chance for LOTS of discussion. I don't know if every child will understand the author's tone fully and if they don't, the way that the author pokes fun of the stereotypes about his culture might be dismissed as racist or weird. It's important for them to understand WHY he takes the tone that he does...the book is just so hilarious for the amount of sadness that it contains. The bottom line on this book is that it needs to be discussed with teenagers as they read it, whether it's in class or on their own. I was a little shocked by one of the cartoons when I saw it, but once I actually read the book, I understood why it's considered to be so good.