Booked

• Genre: Fiction; middle grade verse
• Originally Published: 2016
• Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 660L; grades 5-8
• Structure/Length: 202 individual, titled poems; approximately 320 pages; approximately 2 hours, 26 minutes on audio
• Protagonist/Central Conflict: 12-year-old Nick Hall, a talented soccer player and reluctant reader, is navigating challenges on and off the field. The central conflicts in this verse novel include Nick's struggles with his parents' looming divorce, a set of twin brothers who bully him at school, and his feelings for a girl.
• Potential Sensitivity Issues: Bullying; racism and racist remarks; parental separation and divorce; hospitalization due to a medical emergency; depictions of emotional stress and upheaval; mild profanity

Kwame Alexander, Author

• Bio: Born 1968; American writer of poetry and children's fiction; noted for his contributions to literature for children and young adults; recognized for his innovative use of verse in storytelling; an advocate for literacy and literature
• Other Works: The Crossover (2014); Solo (2017); Swing (2018); The Undefeated (2019)

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:

• Verbomania as a Sport
• Standing Up for Yourself and Your Friends
• Reimagining Family

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will:

• Learn about linguistic and social aspects of words in connection with Nick’s conflicts and skills.
• Read paired texts and other brief resources to make connections via the text’s themes of Verbomania as a Sport, Standing Up for Yourself and Your Friends, and Reimagining Family.