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1-Page Summary of The Crossover

Overall Summary

The Crossover, by award-winning children’s book author and poet Kwame Alexander, was published in 2014. It won the 2015 Newbery Medal and Coretta Scott King Award Honor for children’s literature. Rebound, a prequel to The Crossover, was published in 2018. 12-year-old African American Josh Bell narrates The Crossover in verse; his stories dribble down the page much like he dribbles the ball on a basketball court with his brother Jordan at six feet tall. They are both known as “The Twins” because of their height and they play for their father Chuck who is also an NBA legend (Charles “Da Man” Bell). Chuck watches over his sons closely during games as well as at home where they live with mom Crystal who is also an assistant principal at school. She keeps her eyes on them while keeping her husband calm about how they’re doing since she’s always watching what he eats too.

Josh gets the nickname Filthy McNasty from his father, who is a big jazz fan. Josh doesn’t like it at first because of all the teasing he receives from his classmates, but once he starts playing basketball better and winning games, he really likes hearing his dad yell that name from the bleachers. His brother’s nickname is JB after Michael Jordan, one of his favorite players. He also enjoys betting on games with people and losing bets to make them do things for him. When Josh loses a bet to him about their hair styles in school (they both have dreadlocks), JB makes him cut off some of them with scissors because they’re unevenly cut when missing chunks are removed by accident.

Jordan is immediately attracted to the new girl in school, Alexis. They both play basketball and enjoy sweet tea. Jordan starts sitting with her at lunch, talking on the phone with her, and going to games together with her dad. Josh feels left out because his brother has been showering more and spending time with someone else instead of him. He begins growing his hair back so he can look like Jordan again; however, he becomes even angrier when that doesn’t work because now they’re identical twins again—except for their clothes. His resentment towards Jordan grows until one day Josh snaps and throws a basketball at his brother’s face almost breaking it.

Josh’s dad tells him to write a letter to his brother. After doing so, Jordan forgives Josh. To get in shape for the championship game, Chuck takes them all out to play one-on-one basketball. However, he collapses during the session and is taken to hospital where Crystal rushes after hearing about it on phone while Josh and Jordan go ahead with the game. They win but learn that their father has died from heart attack complications just before they could see him again.

The Bell family is filled with friends and family after Chuck’s funeral. Josh slips outside to shoot free throws, something he used to do with his father. He thinks about how good of a shot his dad had, and the more shots he makes, the closer Josh feels to him. Jordan joins Josh outside when he has made 49 out of 50 free throws; Jordan then hands over their father’s championship ring and tells Josh that it is now his responsibility to keep up the tradition.

Poems 1-5

From the first poem, “Dribbling,” readers get a sense of Josh’s playful voice. He uses words to create fluid movements and quick changes on the page that represent his game. In “Josh Bell,” he also talks about his confidence as a basketball player: “Josh Bell is my name / But Filthy McNasty is my claim to fame.” Readers learn that his nickname comes from jazz music, which was Chuck’s favorite genre. Josh points out how this seems outdated compared to hip-hop music, but Chuck appreciates both genres equally because they have rhythm and flow in common. In “At First,” Josh doesn’t like his nickname at first because everyone makes fun of him for it. However, when he sees how much it means to his dad for him to succeed at basketball, he starts enjoying being called Filthy McNasty: