I found this book at a workshop I went to while teaching third grade. The book was fun and upbeat and the way it was written was a hit with my students.

Not only is it written like poetry, in verse, but the actual words on the page differ with size of text and boldness and even placement on the page. 

A boy, Josh has a twin brother, Jordan. They call Josh “Filthy McNasty.” He says it’s because he’s got mad skills on the court, but really the name originated from a blue’s song his dad “dedicated” to him; it suit him well though and stuck. Each poem has to do with a part of him life and family. It reminds me of another book I read called Keeping the Night Watch by Anita Hope Smith. She writes similarly, from a boy’s view about himself, and his family.

I recommend this book to 8-10 year olds to show them poetry can be so much more than what they know it to be.

Click on the image to visit the author’s Amazon page to find more books written by Alexander.

Alexander, Kwame (2014). The crossover. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.