It's November! Many thanks to North Dakota State University professor Dr. Rebecca Chatham-Vazquez and her English Education students for bringing our readers the Weekend Picks this month.
 Rebecca Chatham-Vazquez | Dr. Rebecca Chatham-Vazquez is an assistant professor and the director of English Education at North Dakota State University, where she is living her dream, teaching Methods courses and Young Adult Literature and mentoring preservice English teachers. She is in her 16th year of teaching and loves it just as much now as she did on day one. She has taught and worked with pre- and in-service teachers in Montana (very rural), Arkansas (urban), Arizona (urban and rural), and, now, North Dakota (urban and rural). She has been a member of NCTE since 2008, and is a strong supporter of professional organizations like NCTE, its state affiliates, and ALAN. Her research interests include teacher education, rural teacher support, YAL, and methods of teaching reading. She can be reached at [email protected] |
Rez Ball by Byron Graves
I started following Byron Graves (Lakota and Ojibwe) on Instagram (@makwa_giniw) when I kept seeing him pop up on Cynthia Leitich Smith’s posts and stories (@cynthialeitichsmith). Since I admire Cyn and her writing so much, I assumed Byron’s work must be amazing, and I was NOT disappointed.
 Byron Graves | Rez Ball follows Tre Brun (Ojibwe), a nerdy young guy with big dreams for his basketball career. Tre wasn’t into basketball until a few years ago, but, once he was into it, he was into it. In the summer, Tre wakes up every morning to workout, doing cardio, running basketball drills, and playing scrimmage games of rez ball with his friends and, he hopes, future teammates. Through a series of events that I won’t spoil for you, Tre ends up getting to play on the Varsity team with guys he has only ever dreamed of playing with. But now he must also face choices he has never faced before, becoming a leader on and off the court. The spirit of rez ball lives through the way Tre and his teammates play together and for their community. They are determined to make state and to make their and their community’s dreams come true. |
| Amidst all the basketball action, Tre bonds deeply with his best friends, mourns a devastating loss, builds better relationships with his parents, and learns what it means to be true to himself. This book is for you if you love basketball (though this is not a prerequisite!), if you love reading about friends who go through highs and lows together, and if you are interested in the perspective of a young man learning to be himself. It was such a good read, and I hope you’ll pick it up! (See my Wednesday post for an interview with author Byron Graves!) You can read a synopsis and preview of the novel here: and purchase your own copy here. |  |
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