Books with author Charles R. Smith Jr.

"Young basketball fans will have a hard time keeping still. . . . A great choice to energize poetry units." — BOOKLISTMargo Dydek, Ticha Penicheiro, Chamique Holdsclaw . . . these are just three of the twelve women profiled in a dynamic group of poems honoring some of the best female players in professional basketball. With action photographs and kinetic lyrics illustrating each player’s style, HOOP QUEENS will grab the attention of any kid who loves basketball — and score a slam-dunk with teachers of poetry.An International Reading Association Children’s ChoiceA New York Public Library Book for the Teen AgeA Chicago Public Library Best Book

"Kids will grab this for the immediacy in the scenes, the brutal standoffs, the fast talk at the ball court, and the elemental conflicts of coming-of-age." - BooklistShooting the breeze with his boys. Tightening his D on the court. Doing a color check — making sure nobody's wearing blue or red, which some Crip or Piru carrying a cut-down golf club would see as disrespect. Then back to Auntie's, hoping she isn't passed out from whiskey at the end of the day. Now that Shawn is headed for high school, he wonders if he'd be better off at the school in Mama's neighborhood, where he'd be free of Compton's hassles. But then he wouldn't be with his fellas — cracking jokes, covering each other's backs — or the fine Marisol, who's been making star appearances in his dreams. Dad says he needs to make his own decision, but what does Shawn want, freedom or friendship? With teasing, spot-on dialogue and an eye to the realities of inner-city life, CHAMELEON takes on the shifting moods of a teenager coming of age.

Picture books at a great price with extra-durable boards and rounded card-stock pages - super strudy but with a grown-up feel. Perfect for emerging readers!Hey! Let's PLAY! It's me . . . your BASEBALL. Whaddya say? When a restless baseball pleads with a young boy to take him out to play, the concept of "fly ball" takes on a whole new meaning! An out-of-this world tale of a boy and his boisterous baseball is sure to have little ones hankering to get into the game.

Cheer on twelve professional women basketball players with a collection of vivid poems by Charles R. Smith Jr. set against vibrant photographs of the players in action.Seven-foot-two-inch Margo Dydek blocks shots like a "Fly Swatter." Ticha Penicheiro feeds the ball to her teammates like a "Chef . . . mixing / and tossing / and chopping / and whipping." And then there’s "Fire Starter" Chamique Holdsclaw, rapidly racking up points and "blazing a trail with moves that scorch."These are just three of the twelve women profiled by Charles R. Smith Jr. in a remarkable group of poems honoring the unique talents and determination of some of the best female players in professional basketball. With its arresting visual layout, action photographs on craft paper, and kinetic lyrics illustrating each player’s style, HOOP QUEENS will grab the attention of any kid who loves basketball - and score a slam-dunk with teachers of poetry. The book’s special cover treatment includes a cloth spine and cover stamping, giving a textured feel.

Harken back to the Golden Age of Piracy, an exceedingly brief but highly memorable epoch. Launched at the beginning of the 1700's, this unforgettable twinkling in time spawned such notorious and celebrated reprobates as Blackbeard, Calico Jack and Black Bart to name but a few. Glamorized and sensationalized by novels and the silver screen to an unrealistic and surreal level, these nautical hooligans have been cast in the roles of noble, gallant, misguided or misunderstood daredevils and protagonists. These erroneous portrayals could not be any further from the truth. In reality, pirates were notorious criminals and despicable cowards responsible for wonton acts of savagery, barbarity and bloodthirstiness. Bilge Rat Pirate Adventurer paints a vastly different and much more realistic picture of the harsh and brutal world of pirates. Expunged are the orchestrated swashbuckling duels amongst rivals, the storied histrionics of saving damsels from unspeakable defilement, the Hollywood-created fantasy of innocents walking the plank to their eternal doom and the ridiculous folly of these fiends actually burying hard-fought booty on some deserted atoll. Rather, this unique and action-packed series depicts a realistic and genuine account of life amongst these sea vultures, while providing a highly powerful and entertaining reading experience. The series centers on a young lad and his lifelong trials and tribulations. Orphaned as a youth, our hero is forced to flee his beloved homeland due to the evil machinations of a despicable bully. Highly educated by a cleric uncle and fluent in a slew of foreign languages, the youth is forced to quickly adapt to the rigorous and unmerciful life as a sailor. By fate's grace, the burgeoning tar has been gifted with a special ability to duplicate all manner of sounds and voices, which enables him to outwit contemptible adversaries and avoid mortal dangers throughout his travels. This raw recruit is sea-seasoned by a host of highly memorable, charismatic and fascinating rascals and rogues. At the same time, our hero is tormented and bedeviled by an abundance of malignant, malicious and lethal enemies. Only his well-honed quick thinking and cunning can keep him out of harms way. The star-crossed adventurer is eventually captured and forced into a life of piracy by a mangy and noxious band of sea wolves. Caught up in a world of nautical psychopaths, miscreants and scalawags, the series paints a realistic account of everyday life aboard a pirate ship, along with documenting a myriad of insidious and malevolent depredations wrought by these sea devils. This refreshing and novel series also introduces an appalling pirate scourge--The Black Tarantula. This pirate demon is nothing more than evil personified. He is a lethal threat to all humanity as he treats his numerous victims with utmost malice, torment and hideous annihilation. This diabolical archfiend takes a particular interest in our young hero and spends considerable effort persecuting and vexing his well being and livelihood. Chocked full of rollicking and captivating sea tales and sailor's yarns, this novel and exciting series is a must read for every pirate aficionado!

Meet Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, and other baseball heroes in this unique radio broadcast reenactment of a legendary All-Star Game, marking a pivotal time in sports history.1934, Chicago. Come step back in time to witness the best of the best Negro League players take each other on in one of the most fascinating All-Star ballgames in American history.Using a unique radio broadcast transcript, Coretta Scott King Award Winner Charles R. Smith, Jr. has recreated this momentous event with a lively play-by-play retelling of the second annual Negro League East-West Game. Meet legendary players like Satchel Paige, Turkey Stearness, and Cool Pappa Bell, hang in the stands with the fans, and experience this exhilarating untold, true story—with a lyrical twist. Stars in the Shadows is a must-have for any baseball aficionado or anyone interested in forgotten history. Beautifully packaged and with incredible black-and-white illustrations by Frank Morrison, this is a rare and extraordinary book.

Bilge Rat - Pirate Adventurer is a three part series drawn from the imagination and investigation of Kevin Charles Smith in this remarkable debut. Described as "Mutiny on the Bounty meets Pirates of the Caribbean with an Oliver Twist", this first volume is written with incredible detail and historical accuracy. William Eden and brother Toby are two helpless orphans in early 1700 London. Taken in by an aged clerical uncle, the boys are assigned specific maintenance duties in the cavernous Saint Agnes of Agony Basilica. By day, their duty is to clean, wax and maintain the aged facility for their uncle whose failing eyesight prevents his presence or assistance. Each day the lads are also provided a lesson de jour by their learned and caring relative who bestows upon them quite a solid education. One day, while William is practicing his language lessons, he utilizes the natural echo-like chamber of the empty basilica to ensure his translations are precisely correct. In the process, he discovers that he has a natural talent that enables him to duplicate all manner of sounds and voices. From that point on, he decides to keep his fabulous talent secret and changes his name to Echo thereby hiding this special talent in plain sight. By night, the boy s assignment is to venture down into the creepy bowels of the church to eradicate the pesky rodent population. Charged with a daily bounty of 25 tails or be penalized their one daily meal, Echo devises a variety of methods to reach their rattail goal . In the end, Echo duplicates rat speech (at least rat squeaks and squeals) and like the fabled Pied Piper leads the odious cellar dwelling creatures to their doom. Due to this ability to easily capture their prey, the boys have time on their hands and begin exploration of London at night. Their travels take them to Slugger s Emporium, a gaming and drinking establishment for the wicked and depraved. These nightly excursions also take them to the London docks where they routinely trespass on various docked ships for fun and excitement. On one such vessel they are discovered by a kind hearted cook named Handy, who befriends them and regales them with exciting stories from his many voyages. At the same time, the brothers are tormented by a vicious bully named Scarf Rockingham. By a series of unique ruses, Echo implicates Scarf in a number of dastardly deeds which leads to the villain s punishment thereby establishing an undying hatred for the brothers. Scarf eventually abducts Toby and savagely murders their aged uncle implicating Echo for this horrific crime. Echo is forced to flee his homeland and joins Handy for a voyage to the New World. Beginning as a cook s assistant, Echo learns the vital art of navigation and survival aboard ship. Haunted and persecuted by the vessel s bullying first mate, Echo must devise all manner of tricks and gambits to simply remain alive. Along the way, he saves both the ship and three aged traveling sisters from a band of bloodthirsty pirates earning the respect and gratitude of all.

Teenagers spend more time watching movies than they do in any other recreational activity. With this popular resource, youth leaders can present the foundations of Christian faith through a medium and teaching tool that teenagers know and love―the movies. Reel to Real: Making the Most of Movies with Youth uses the most popular and meaningful movies for youth as the basis for religious education. Every issue of Reel to Real offers: • Video Viewing charts that specify the recommended film clips and their location • The Fine Print, which details the legal, copyright, and licensing issues of using films in educational settings • A full-blown retreat based on the movies • The photocopiable Student Movie Pass, a parental consent form that can be customized to fit the specific needs of every youth group • Pause, a leader devotion section, which can easily be adapted for a movie-based session or youth devotion • and much more! Volume 3 Number 4 features The Cowboys; High Noon; The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance; The Outlaw Josey Wales; Wild Wild West, and A Western Retreat: City Slickers I and II.