Matt Tavares, Hoops, Walker Books Australia, March 2023, 224 pp., RRP $30.75 (pbk), ISBN 9781536231953
In Wilkins, Indiana, back in 1976, the girls can cheer for the basketball team all they want, but heaven forbid that they might want to play basketball themselves, or that they might actually be good at it. When the art teacher starts up a girls’ basketball team, though, Judy is very excited. Finally, she might get to actually play and compete!
Playing on the new team, though, brings more challenges than Judy had ever expected. No one wants to make time or space in the school gym for the girls to practise, and no one in town seems to even know there is a girls’ team, let alone turn out to watch them play. Judy and her teammates find themselves fighting for all the things that the boys get to take for granted. And Judy’s friendship with her best friend is tested when Stacey can’t understand why Judy wants to play basketball rather than be on the cheerleading team with her, like they always have.
As they fight for the team they’re building, Judy’s team finds that some things don’t change, but some things do, and those things are worth fighting for.
Hoops is a fictional graphic novel, but Matt Tavares was inspired by the true story of Judi Warren and the 1976 Warsaw High School girls’ basketball team. Fictionalising the account in this way allowed Tavares to bring an empathy and insight into the events that a nonfiction work might not have, and the graphic novel format moves the story along with energy and a strong emotional and visual connection to the characters.
Judy’s story, beyond the obvious themes of persistence and overcoming obstacles, highlights the importance of support and friendship, as the girls of the newly formed team get to know each other and work together both on the basketball court and off, and as the town comes to know and eventually throw their support behind the fledgling team. It also touches on the way that friendships can be tested when things change, and sometimes come back stronger.
This is going to be a great read for both sports fans looking for a fantastic story, or even a bit of history, and also for readers who appreciate the graphic novel format and who want a good, solid story of friendship and growth. Hoops would also be a terrific book to hand to a fan of the Babysitter graphic novels who might be looking for something similar with a bit more meat to it, or readers who love Raina Telgemeier’s popular graphic novels, including Smile.
Reviewed by Emily Clarke
