The book I’m reviewing is called Crossover by Kwame Alexander. The book is about a boy named Josh Bell, also known as Filthy McNasty, and about his twin brother Jordan Bell, also known as JB. They are thirteen year old twins. The author uses poems and rhymes to describe their lives on and off the basketball court. The main characters, Filthy and JB  fight often as brothers do and the conflicts get pretty bad.

 Josh got the nickname Filthy McNasty when he and his dad were listening to a musician named Horace Silver and his dad says, “Josh, the cat is the real deal. Listen to the piano, fast and free, Just like you and JB on the court.” His dad dedicated the song “Filthy McNasty” to Josh.

One day, Filthy decided that he wanted dreads like his dad. While watching a replay of his dad’s old games, Filthy noticed that his dad’s hair looked like wings taking him higher and higher. Filthy is girl-crazy but never gets any girls. He is good in the paint (an area on the basketball court) and he can dunk. Jordan got the nickname “JB” from the initials of his first and last name. JB is bald, a great shooter, a girl magnet, and likes to bet with his brother. His dad is a sportscaster and was a former basketball player for the European League. His mom, also known as Dr. Bell, is the assistant principal at the boys’ junior high school.

Filthy and JB made a bet. The bet was that if the game was tied and it came down to the last shot and JB get the ball didn’t miss the shot, then he gets to cut off Filthy’s hair. If JB misses the shot, he has to walk around naked at lunch time. The twins changed the bet because they thought it was too bad. They changed it to if JB lost he would have to moon the nerdy group of 6th graders at lunch, but if Filthy lost, he would only have to cut off one lock of hair. The game was tied with three seconds left. He shot with one second left; the ball was flying in the air and went right into the hoop and Filthy lost the bet.

Filthy and JB’s dad has a heart attack and dies. Filthy had a one-on-one basketball game with his dad. While his dad was trying to dunk, he fell and passed out. Filthy screamed “HELP PLEASE!” to the crowd. His dad was rushed to the hospital and was in a coma because of a myocardial infarction. Myocardial infarction happens when blood flow to an area of the heart is blocked long enough time that part of the heart muscle is damaged or dies. After 19 days in the hospital his dad died at thirty-nine years old.

On page 14, Filthy’s quote helped me discover more about his character. “My hair is long my height’s tall. See I’m the next Kevin Durant, LeBron, and Chris Paul.” This quote helped me discover that he thinks he is really good at basketball like Kevin Durant, LeBron, and Chris Paul.