In Shook, an insightful and rhythmic free-verse novel by Julian Randall (The Chainbreakers) with art by illustrator and designer Nathan Walker, a 12-year-old boy discovers that he needs to give and receive assists on and off the basketball court.
Malik has plans: varsity basketball in eighth grade, college ball, then "first pick in the NBA Draft." He idolizes his father, a once-legendary player, who gave Malik the nickname "Shake": "Don't nothing shake/ my son,/ not a thing." Shake is confident, his parents are his biggest fans, his teammates are like brothers--"The five of us, an assist that never stops"--and his best friend Kyla "feels like the only shade/ on a 1,000-degree day." But when Shake fractures his ankle at the championship game, possibly destroying his chances of varsity, he feels "more Shook than Shake." As his anxiety grows, he starts to experience panic attacks and retreats from his loving, supportive community. Despite the difficulties, Shake must ultimately learn that "sometimes/ the biggest problem we can have/ is letting anxiety make us forget/ we're not alone."
Randall plays with the text on the page, shaping lines into concrete poetry and using outlining and shadowing to highlight words: "swirls" spins and "dissolve" fades away. These dynamic typographical elements, along with Walker's chapter-introducing illustrations, encourage readers to "feel the rhythm of the game" right alongside Shake. Comparisons to Kwame Alexander (The Crossover) and David Bowles (They Call Me Güero) are natural and apt. But Randall's writing bounces with its own rhythm and rebounds, even in the midst of life-plan interference. --Emilie Coulter, freelance writer and editor