SCROLL DOWN TO READ THE POST
I Beat the Odds
I vividly remember complaining loudly about having to read a football book during Thanksgiving vacation, 2006. I was on the Alex Awards committee, and Michael Lewis’s The Blind Side (Norton, 2006) had just been nominated. I dragged it to my parent’s house, thinking I would leave it for my father or brother when when I was finished. They never got a chance. I gulped it down in one sitting, then forced everyone sitting around the Thanksgiving dinner table to listen to me rave about it (and talk about football strategy — definitely a first) to the detriment of polite conversation. (Perhaps slightly exaggerated, but all true.)
I am still amazed by the appeal of the book, to all ages, both male and female. Even in my all-girls school library, The Blind Side is rarely on the shelf. It is hard to believe that anyone who reads The Blind Side (or sees the movie) does not immediately want to know how Michael Oher is doing, what has happened since he made it to Ole Miss.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Finally, here is Oher’s story in his own words, filling in details from his childhood to his life since the events depicted in The Blind Side. He also gets a chance to set the record straight on the way he was portrayed, particularly in the movie adaptation.
Oher does have an agenda. He wants foster parents to understand what their kids are going through. He wants to help struggling young people make good choices. And he hopes that adult readers might consider adopting or helping young people in some fashion, to show them the difference they can make. So yes, the book is occasionally preachy, but Oher is so very sincere that it is hard to mind.
OHER, Michael & Don Yaeger. I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness to The Blind Side and Beyond. 250p. Gotham. 2011. Tr $26. ISBN 978-1-592-40612-8. LC 2010045531.
Adult/High School–Michael Oher’s story was introduced by Michael Lewis in The Blind Side (Norton, 2006), and in the 2009 movie. Now it is Oher’s turn. He begins with his earliest memory and continues through life as a player in the NFL. Oher’s mother moved her large family around Memphis, constantly changing neighborhoods and schools, sometimes a caring parent, more often an absent, drug-addicted one. Oher was determined to change his life from the age of seven or eight, seriously pursuing and studying sports long before he made it to Briarcrest. Being adopted by the Tuohy family was the breakthrough he needed. Oher obviously hopes this book will reach teens going through similar difficulties, or the adults who might care for them. He gives credit to the people who helped him: the teachers, coaches, social workers, friends, and the parents of friends who fed him and let him sleep over before the Tuohys provided a more permanent solution. In the final chapters, Oher offers details of college life, being drafted into the NFL, his life during and between seasons, and how he chooses to spend and share his monetary success. He shares quibbles with the book and movie, and he writes a chapter advising struggling kids on finding role models, staying out of trouble, being true to their talents, and working toward success. He ends with a list of organizations for those who wish to get involved. This is an inspiring tale, sure to be popular with teens whether they are in need of help or in a position to provide it.–Angela Carstensen, Convent of the Sacred Heart, New York City
Filed under: Nonfiction
About Angela Carstensen
Angela Carstensen is Head Librarian and an Upper School Librarian at Convent of the Sacred Heart in New York City. Angela served on the Alex Awards committee for four years, chairing the 2008 committee, and chaired the first YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adult committee in 2009. Recently, she edited Outstanding Books for the College Bound: Titles and Programs for a New Generation (ALA Editions, 2011). Contact her via Twitter @AngeReads.
ADVERTISEMENT
SLJ Blog Network
Eerdmans Books for Young Readers: A Fall 2024 Preview
Unicorn Boy | Review
A Rover’s Story: STEAM Connections, a guest post by Amy Brownlee
The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT