Sielski, Mike

"In [this book], readers will travel from the cracked concrete basketball courts of Philadelphia in the 1960s and '70s--where Kobe's father, Joe, became a playground, college, and professional standout--to the Bryant family's isolation in Europe, where Kobe spent his formative years, to the leafy suburbs of Lower Merion, where Kobe's legend was born. The story will trace his career and life at Lower Merion--he led the Aces to the 1995-96 Pennsylvania state championship, a dramatic underdog run for a team with just one star player--and the run-up to the 1996 NBA draft, where Kobe's dream of playing pro basketball culminated with his acquisition by the Los Angeles Lakers"--Provided by publisher.

"In [this book], readers will travel from the cracked concrete basketball courts of Philadelphia in the 1960s and '70s--where Kobe's father, Joe, became a playground, college, and professional standout--to the Bryant family's isolation in Europe, where Kobe spent his formative years, to the leafy suburbs of Lower Merion, where Kobe's legend was born. The story will trace his career and life at Lower Merion--he led the Aces to the 1995-96 Pennsylvania state championship, a dramatic underdog run for a team with just one star player--and the run-up to the 1996 NBA draft, where Kobe's dream of playing pro basketball culminated with his acquisition by the Los Angeles Lakers"--Provided by publisher.

Tells the story of Bryan Buckley and Colby Umbrell, captains of rival high school football teams in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, who enlisted in the military after graduation and were sent to fight in the Middle East--Colby as an Army Ranger and Bryan as a Marine, and discusses how their families and the entire town were affected when only one of them survived.