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Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang
4.0
funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

Story of one season of the Basketball team of the fancy Catholic High School that Gene Luen Yang taught at for many years. Also kind of a memoir of a pivotal year in Yang's career. This is not a story about a plucky underdog. This is probably the least weird narrative I've read by him. The narrative gets a little bit meta at some point, but it doesn't constitute a huge mind-blowing twist. Also includes the history of Basketball, including evolution of women's basketball, & the special relationship Catholic schools have had with the sport. I had always assumed that my town's Catholic schools always beat all the other local schools for the same reasons they won at all the other sports: they are less constrained by lack of funding or having to draw from a particular school district. I was pleased to see my brothers in-law's alma mater Sac High make an appearance, & less pleased to see my old Mayor appear. Do not skip the endnotes. Among other things, they'll give you more of the story behind Sacto's former Mayor.