Tony Hawk: Professional Skateboarder

by Tony Hawk, Sean Mortimer

In this young adult autobiography, Tony Hawk shares the stories from his life that have helped him become a skateboarding hero. Hawk speaks of being a super-competitive ′demon′ child who found peace while on a skateboard. Classmates teased him because of his interest in an ′uncool′ sport. Instead of retaliating with violence, he practised even more. With his story, he will inspire a younger generation of fans to stand up for what they believe in and follow their dreams. Ages 8-12

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Sports, Memoir, Autobiography, Biography Memoir

155 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Anthony Frank "Tony" Hawk (born May 12, 1968), nicknamed "The Birdman", is an American professional skateboarder, actor, and owner of skateboard company Birdhouse. Hawk is well known for completing the first documented 900 and for his licensed video game titles, published by Activision. He is widely considered to be one of the most successful and influential pioneers of modern vertical skateboarding.

In 2002, he created the "Boom Boom HuckJam", an extreme sports exhibition and tour that was launched in Las Vegas. Throughout his career, Hawk has made numerous appearances in films, other media, and his own series of video games. He has also been involved in various philanthropic activities, including his own Tony Hawk Foundation that helps to build skateparks in underprivileged areas. In 2014, Hawk was labelled as one of the "Most influential skateboarders of all-time" by FoxWeekly.

Reviews

[Steph · Rating 2 out of 5]

this was on my brother's bookshelf when we were growing up, and at some point i stole it. i read it in a sleepy haze last night, and it was actually super entertaining.

so many cool tony facts!! like did you know he bought his first piece of real estate when he was still in high school? i didn't realize he was so successful so early. just an immensely talented and dedicated dude with super supportive parents who gave him a leg up.

old school skate culture is interesting, but kinda yucky since it's almost exclusively male and largely white. such a boys' club! when i was a kid i was interested in skateboarding, but i felt alienated by it being a boy thing. it's no wonder i didn't read this book when i had access to it as a kid! not a single woman skater is even mentioned!

anyway. the book's typesetting and layout are a blast from the past, with all kinds of funky eye-catching designs. almost like reading a magazine. yes, this is what 2002 was like.

i'm sure this book has helped encourage many kids to read more, but it's fun for non-kids too 🥺

[D.j. Reposar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tony hawk professional skateboarder written by and interviewed by sean mortimer is about a professional skater by the name of Tony Hawk. He is considered an all time skateboarding legend. He grew up on the coastal side of LA with his father. he had a fairly good life while he was living with his father in LA and as he grew up he was starting to become better and better at skating. As he started to get sponsored and thought his life was going to be all great, his dad dies. This was a major turning point in his life for him. But instead of letting his dads death get in the way of his career he let it go and continued to do what he does best skating. As he started to grow up and get better at skating and get more sponsors, he finally then go's pro. once he go's pro he starts to travel the world and do demos for all the local skateparks. once he returns to the states he decides to get married and settle down by having 3 kids. he then buys a house in Carlsbad San Diego and there he has his own backyard skatepark that he shares with his son. Overall this book was pretty good for those who would like to read a book about a history of skateboarding and a professional as well.

[Brent · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is quite nerdy that I read this book, I know. A friend was done with it and passed it my way. I haven't had much time to read like I would like to, so I suppose it's ironic that I spent precious time on a thing like this.

But it was a quick and easy read. If you're not a skateboarder, I would imagine this book will carry no interest for you whatsoever. Tony Hawk seems like a really affable guy and I really respect him as an athlete and celebrity. But this book isn't so much about delving in to who he is as much as it's about a history of the rise of skateboarding from an eyewitness account.

As a boarder, I thought it was a fun read. Of course, the language and many of the stories are written for 14 year olds. Still, it was an entertaining and quick read. Though, I kept thinking to myself, "This could easily be a two hour special on VH1 or something."

[Rhys Cox · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy reading.

[JoshuaWalden · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. I learned a lot more about Tony Hawk than I previously knew. I even learned that the reason he made a skating video game series is because he liked playing games as a kid, and he liked skateboarding as a teen so he mixed them together to make Tony Hawks Pro Skater.

[Tim Verbergt · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun quick read. But I really wanted some parts to go way deeper.

Maybe that's what his book "Hawk, occupation: skateboarder" is for.

But then... Why does this this book exist?

[liza · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very funny quick read.

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The novel Tony Hawk, by the great Tony Hawk himself is a biography explaining what the life was like during the time he would skate as a young teen. In his book it said that during his time there were not too many skaters and that if you skated, and you knew what you were doing it didn’t really make cool with everybody else, unlike today of course, where if you can ride a skate board or do a simple Ollie you’re cool. But no, things were said to be different back then. In his book it said that when he was twelve years old he was the only one in his school at the time who skated. He didn’t look at all like anybody else, with scabs all over their knees and arms, and ripped clothing because of falling after trying to perform new tricks. It says the while everyone else had either Adidas or Nikes he had high top vans or a pair of converse with duck across the toes from knee sliding. What I think this is saying is that if you wanted to do something that you would dedicate your life to you have to do things you may think others think is cool, but it will pay off in the long run as long as you stick to it.

[Garron Thom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is called Tony Hawk Professional Skateboarder and the Arthur is Tony Hawk himself. This books genre is nonfiction because it has real characters in it. Summary- This book is about Tony Hawks career from when he was a kid. Tony Hawk was a little kid that started his skating career ever sense he was a kid. Tony hawk learned how to skate by his older brother when his brother taught him how. As Tony hawk grew up he became very famous. Tony hawk was featured on a mountain dew commercial and featured in ESPN.
I gave this book 5 stars because I like Tony Hawk and he is a pretty cool person and inspiring to me.

[Love of Hopeless Causes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable reading but I prefer, "Tony Hawk, a Life in Skateboarding." https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4... Having read a good number of skate mags, I'm not sure this does justice to Hawk's legend or humanity. Can't say for certain because I read this several years ago. Presumably written for Young Adults, it seemed sweet and vanilla--for someone on the edge of something so rad. I'd rather watch several hours of Bones Brigade vids than reread it.

[Advaiy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book was an amazing example of perseverance and courage.It was a real page turner and I was sorry when I finished reading it,

[Anthony Ciurleo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book Tony Hawk professional skateboarder, about Tony Hawk and his life. In this book Tony talked about stories that lead him to becoming a professional skateboarder. My first favorite part of the book was when Tony was first younger he was a “demon child” and gave his parents hell growing up with tantrums and fighting with family. Growing up he first thought he wanted to be a math teacher and even had a classroom in his backyard with his friends at school. His career for skating then began when he first stepped onto a fiberglass board. Another great part of the book is when he found a stray cat named Zorro, and ended up keeping him. How long did you keep Zorro? I also like when he then starts his first contest in skateboarding I really enjoy this because I feel the motivation that he faced when going to the contests. I can relate in this book the most with Tony Hawk because just like Tony when I first started skating not many people skated so you were the outsider.
A good lesson in the book that teaches people how to take losing is when Tony was competing in the competitions and the younger skaters have tricks that Tony couldn’t compete with. Then the sad part of the book came down crashing. Tony then took a break from skating and decided to start his own company Birdhouse which unfortunately did not do well the first years, Tony then took to skating again for a while and won a couple contests. Then Tony’s Dad got very sick and was in the hospital. Later Tony then had a contest he wanted to skate in. Espn’s Extreme Games. Then the day came and Tony was at this contest and the camera man came around and said “Hi” to his dad. His dad supported him his whole life in skating so Tony simply saying hi over to his dad on TV was really cool.
At the end of the book Tony was age 30 now and Birdhouse wanted Tony to film for the last skate video/part called The End. My favorite quote is "I never expected to make a career out of skateboarding. I think I lasted so long as a professional because I was always thankful for what skateboarding did for me". And how long did you skate vert in contests for?

[Jamari G · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book Tony Hawk by Tonk Hawk is about, a guy named Tony Hawk shares the stories from his life that have helped him become a skateboarding hero. Hawk speaks of being a super competitive demon child who found peace while on a skateboard. Classmates teased him because of his interest in an uncool sport. Instead of retaliating with violence he practiced even more. I found the book on the mps Catalog.
He is considered an all time skateboarding legend. He grew up on the coastal side of LA with his father. He had a fairly good life while he was living with his father in LA and as he grew up he was starting to become better and better at skating. As he started to get sponsored and thought his life was going to be all great his dad dies. This was a major turning point in his life for him. But instead of letting his dad's death get in the way of his career he let it go and continued to do what he does best skating. As he started to grow up and get better at skating and get more sponsors, he finally then goes pro. once he goes pro he starts to travel the world and do demos for all the local skateparks. once he returns to the states he decides to get married and settle down by having 3 kids.
I personally enjoy reading the book I like how because i can relate to it in many ways. I use to ride skateboards and I fell off and cut my elbow wide open and had to get stitches and after that i didn't ride a skateboard anymore. I also live with my mom and my brothers and sisters.
Other books like this one Round Ireland with a Fridge , Playing the Moldovans at Tennis. I think my friend Justin would enjoy reading these books because he really likes adventures book and he likes to try and figure out the ending of the stories to make them more fun.

[Nicole Beck · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an autobiography, non-fiction, grades 6-8, level V. I learned years ago that Tony Hawk is a skateboarding hero. My son was obsessed with him as a child. He made skateboarding cool! I think this book would be great in a classroom library for kiddos who aren't into team, competitive sports. I love his honesty about his life's struggles and his positive mindset. Even though he is a daredevil he is a great role model.

[Ethan Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing book to read with young kids.

My son and daughter loved it. Teaches the value of hard work and dedication. Also that success is never easy and requires perseverance through some pretty hard times.

[Ethan Xu · Rating 5 out of 5]

This autobiography was really good. It depicts a story of the come up of Tony Hawk. How did Tony Hawk become Tony Hawk? It takes a through a story of time to how he developed his interest in skating and his younger life.

[Andrew Kehoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

made me want to skateboard almost

[Nick Brown]

Best book I've ever read in my entire life.

[Danielo Bogart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Tony Hawk.

[David Salkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

ahhh, Memories of skateboarding!!!!

[Isaiah Quinton]

I think that this is a great book for all skateboarders out there.

[Kendra KB.HG · Rating 4 out of 5]

Son rated it a 5. I rate it a 3

[Jamie Donnelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Book

A great book about the life of the Great and Inspirational Tony Hawk.
I recommend everyone read it as it is very relatable.

[Vashane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hawk shares the stories from his life that have helped him become a skateboarding hero. He talks of being a super-competitive "demon" child who found peace while on a skateboard. With his story he can inspire a younger generation of fans to stand up for what they believe in and follow their dreams.
In this young adult autobiography, Tony Hawk shares the stories
Hawk speaks of being a super-competitive 'demon' child who found peace while on a skateboard. Classmates teased him because of his interest in an 'uncool' sport. Instead of retaliating with violence, he practiced even more. With his story, he will inspire a younger generation of fans to stand up for what they believe in and follow their dreams.

[Hassan Hassan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I find this 155 page biography book, called Tony Hawk, set in California, by Seam Mortimer very entertaining and interesting for a few reasons. First, I used to play the Tony Hawk video games along with my cousin back in 2002 through 2005. They were one of my favorite games and I thought that all the tricks we could do on the skateboard were awesome. The other reason is I'd like to learn more about skateboarding, as I find it an interesting sport. Reading about Tony Hawk's personal life and how Skateboarding shaped his life up is very enjoyable. When he needed to self-soothe and just forget all the world, he picked up his skateboard and headed to the ramps. I connect with Hawk in this way since I also self-soothe when I start playing music.

[Gabe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tony Hawk, really such an amazing guy. Who would have guessed that he was always a straight A student? Who ever would have guessed that it took him more then fifteen years to learn one trick? Certainly not me. In this book I learned so much about the famous skateboarder Tony Hawk. This book tells his story from the day he was born to the most recent imformation on him. It's a really fun book because it comes from his point of view and he talks about his perception of his life and childhood. He was a very intresting guy and even if you're not intrested in skateboarding or Tony Hawk specificlly, this is still a very good and funny book and a quick read.

[Caelea · Rating 3 out of 5]

My first venture into skateboarding culture....and I found it interesting, informative, and entertaining. The reading level is...accessible to everyone. One who absolutely hated reading could read this book in a day. There are great photographs and the narrative is super-conversational. A 3rd grader through adult could pick up this book and enjoy it...and I have a lot more respect for Tony Hawk now, and for the guiding, patient, loving parents who steer their ADHD children into a creative, productive, and challenging activity. Boarding channeled Hawk's extreme energy into a successful career. That is awesome.

[Miss Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not a skater...my brother was. I'm pretty sure Tony Hawks visited Napier's Marine Parade and put on a show. With such limited prior knowledge, I didn't know what to expect from this book, but wanted to read some non-fiction for a change. Fairly early on, he describes an early injury which forces me to close my eyes, cringe and shudder. Then the humour sets in. As I read on about the ups and downs, and strengths and insecurities of his life, I end up admiring the skater attitude of perseverance and courage. Then I find and rewatch his behind-the-scenes video on the first downward spiral loop.

[David H · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book i read,Professional Skateboarder,my book was mainly about tony growing into the pro skater he is today,from breaking records to breaking bones! this book is full of ups and downs throughout. I rated this book 3 stars it had a good vibe to it if you like a nice easy book to read real quick or if you're into skating other than that its not a very challenging for a experienced reader. the book was very short and vague, short chapters easy words not very descriptive, the book was not abysmal although. this book is intended for a 5th-7th grade level of reading.

[Children's Literature Project · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tony Hawk: Professional Skateboarder tells the life story of Tony Hawk. He talks about how he was a "demon" child that found he was interested in skateboarding. He was made fun of for skateboarding because it was "uncool." That just made him more determined. This book presents a good role model in the sports arena where we have so many poor role models.

Classroom uses:
- class library
- Unit on autobiographies.

DRA: Not Available
Grade level Equivalent: 6.7
Lexile Measure®: 1000
Guided Reading: V