Middle Grade Monday: Becoming Muhammad Ali by James Patterson and Kwame Alexander

Image: Little, Brown and Company/ Hachette

Becoming Muhammad Ali by James Patterson and Kwame Alexander. Illustrated by Daywud Anyabwile. 320 p. Little, Brown/ Hachette Book Group & Versify/ Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, October, 2020. 9780316498166. (Review of finished purchased copy.)

Middle Grade Monday features Becoming Muhammad Ali by James Patterson and Kwame Alexander. Mr. Alexander, author of the always-checked-out The Crossover, has teamed up with Mr. Patterson, the "author" of the ever-popular Middle School and I, Funny series to write a work of biographical fiction based on the early life of Cassius Clay that was fully authorized by the Ali estate. Have you ever heard the saying, "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee?" This was part of Ali's colorful and poetic smack-talk as he won bout after bout on his way to the title Heavyweight Boxing Champion. But what of the boy known as Cassius Clay?

Written in "Twelve Rounds," poet Alexander depicts twelve-year-old Cassius Clay, growing up in segregated Louisville, Kentucky with his parents, brother and extended family. His parents valued education and while Cassius was bright, school was difficult and boring. He knew he was destined for greatness and once he found boxing at age twelve, pursued it with a passion. As usual, Mr. Alexander's poetry crackles with energy, rhythm and sass.

Mr. Patterson's first-person prose introduces each chapter in the form of a fictional friend named Lucky, who provides some historical context and other extra information, including a glimpse into Muhammad Ali's adult life. The dynamic illustrations by Daywud Anyabwile, the same artist for Mr. Alexander's graphic novel adaptation of The Crossover, add to the interest of this dual-perspective narrative.

I wish we were in school and the library was open so that I could get this into my students hands ASAP! This is a book I will definitely reread with my ears. If you ever have the opportunity to listen to Kwame Alexander read his books, do it. While his poetry leaps off the page, hearing him brings an extra energy. 

Definitely a first-purchase! And, teachers, check out the Discussion Guide!

Fact Friday: Twelve Rounds to Glory: the story of Muhammed Ali by Charles R. Smith Jr.

12 Rounds to Glory: the story of Muhammed Ali by Charles R. Smith Jr. Illustrated by Bryan Collier. 80 p. Candlewick Press, November, 2007. 9780763616922. (Own)

Fact Friday features 12 Rounds to Glory: the story of Muhammad Ali written by Christopher R. Smith and brilliantly illustrated by Bryan Collier. Muhammad Ali never backed down from a fight. He fought just as hard against prejudice out of the boxing ring as he boxed opponents in it. He won Olympic gold in 1960 as an eighteen-year-old named Cassius Clay. By age twenty-two, he was the heavyweight champ, an outspoken Civil Rights activist and a convert to Islam. From then on, he was Muhammad Ali. It is apt that this biography is written in poems as Ali was also a poet. He would trash talk his opponent in poems but he would also write serious spoken word poems, which, it could be argued, were the precursors to rap.