Smith, Elliott. Bo and the Basketball Game. Subi Bosa, Illus. Bo at the the Buzz Series; bk. 1. Lerner, 01/2023. 32pp. Reader. GRADES 1 – 2. PLB $29.32. 978-1-7284-7613-1. Paper $9.99. 978-1-7284-8627-7. ADDITIONAL.
SERIES REVIEW: Bo is an African American boy who lives above his grandfather’s barbershop. In the first three books in the series, his grandfather Pop-Pop appears to be Bo’s only family member, but he has a loving and supportive diverse community. Bo longs to be a basketball star, plants vegetables in the community garden, and forgets to mail the electric bill payment for Pop-Pop. The plots are simple and relatable for emergent readers. The text is set down in two or three paragraphs per page, with abundant color illustrations that appear to be gouache in a cartoon style. There are three chapters in each book, and the reading level is comparable to Lobel’s classic Frog and Toad books. Although these stories are not particularly innovative, the need for diverse main characters in easy readers is important, so many libraries will want to add these to their collections.
Penny Peck—San Jose School University iSchool