The Miracle of St. Anthony (Roberto Agrait)

The Miracle Of St. Anthony, Adrian Wojnarowski, Gotham books, 375pp
I herd the book was a good book to read from one of my basketball coaches and a friend.
Summary: Coach Hurley the head coach of St. Anthony’s basketball team brought up a program from good basically to the top, elite of the New Jersey and Countries basketball world. Emerging from the thought and rough and dangerous streets of Jersey City the players at St. Anthony’s face adversity and problems and real life scenarios everyday like drug problems, gang violence, and poverty. The kids came from nothing and Coach helped them turn into men and taught them what it takes to be a man and a great basketball player and showed them what a good education could do. Coach took them from the streets to State basketball champion and turned potential and a dream into a reality for many youngsters which was to go to college and play college basketball division 1,2,and 3. He has even had kids end up in the NBA. Coach changed the city, they had something to be proud of and helped a lot of people. He is recognized all over the country for the work he has done.
The audience is anyone who likes a story of inspiration and growth. Anyone who likes sports and odds stacked against someone. A book for people who like to see people do well for others and see people succeed.
Adrian Wojnarowski pays attention to detail and wants the reader to feel and see what’s going on, that’s his style of writing.
" Away from Jersey City, there was no chorus of gunfire in public housing to stir the players from sleep, no apartment heat turned down to save money in the dead of winter, no going to bed on an empty stomach." (110)
Passages:
" It didn’t hit him until he was thirteen and really realized his father was gone." she says. " He needed him, and realized that he wasn’t there. It hit him all at once: the acting out, the behavior, the mood changes."( 3)
This passage shows that a person should be grateful for what they have because others not a fortunate don’t have it. It was an important passage in my opinion for everyone to understand and learn to appreciate.
" The sunlight cascaded through the high windows, tumbling past the banners on the walls of the Pascack Valley High School gymnasium in the affluent community of Hillsdale in New Jersey’s Bergen County." ( 30)
If you play basketball the passage reminds you of walking into a gym in the morning getting ready to work out. It makes you remember the feeling you had during practice before and after. It makes you feel what the author is saying.
" The gymnasium crawled with college recruiters. For Sean McCurdy, it was like a candy store. Pittsburgh. Georgia. Marquette. Seton Hall. Rutgers..
" Marquette is here to see you and me,..."
I cant imagine the feeling they felt knowing you are doing something so hard with there lives and succeeding. It would feel great to know that there are college coaches looking at you and wanting you to play for them. It a dream come true.
My Relationship:
the book was great in my eyes. I think it was a book that I enjoyed because I loved how kids that came from nothing made something from there lives into something very little people do in there situations. I know what those kids are felling somewhat so I can imagine a little bit how they feel when they make it. I liked how someone cared so much about his athletes that he would do anything for them and help them anytime. I liked the book a lot.