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Eagle Blue: A Team, a Tribe, and a High School Basketball Season in Arctic Alaska
n the tradition of Friday Night Lights, an extraordinary journey into the basketball-crazed culture of remote Arctic Alaska.
The village of Fort Yukon sits eight miles above the Arctic Circle, deep in Alaska's "bush" country. The six hundred men, women and children who live there—almost all of them Athabascan Gwich'in Natives—have little to cheer for. Their traditional Indian ways of life are rapidly vanishing in the face of a modern culture that is closing in on all sides, threatening to destroy their community and their identity. The one source of pride they can count on is their boys' high school basketball team—the Fort Yukon Eagles.
Eagle Blue follows the Eagles, winners of six regional championships in a row, through the course of an entire 28-game season, from their first day of practice in late November to the Alaska State Championship Tournament in March. With insight, frankness, and compassion, Michael D'Orso climbs into the lives of these fourteen boys, their families, and their coach, shadowing them through an Arctic winter of fifty-below-zero temperatures and near-round-the-clock darkness as the Eagles criss-cross Alaska by air, van, and snow machine in pursuit of their—and their village's—dream.
The village of Fort Yukon sits eight miles above the Arctic Circle, deep in Alaska's "bush" country. The six hundred men, women and children who live there—almost all of them Athabascan Gwich'in Natives—have little to cheer for. Their traditional Indian ways of life are rapidly vanishing in the face of a modern culture that is closing in on all sides, threatening to destroy their community and their identity. The one source of pride they can count on is their boys' high school basketball team—the Fort Yukon Eagles.
Eagle Blue follows the Eagles, winners of six regional championships in a row, through the course of an entire 28-game season, from their first day of practice in late November to the Alaska State Championship Tournament in March. With insight, frankness, and compassion, Michael D'Orso climbs into the lives of these fourteen boys, their families, and their coach, shadowing them through an Arctic winter of fifty-below-zero temperatures and near-round-the-clock darkness as the Eagles criss-cross Alaska by air, van, and snow machine in pursuit of their—and their village's—dream.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published March 7, 2006
52 people are currently reading
468 people want to read
About the author
Michael D'Orso
29 books8 followersThe son of a U.S. Navy submarine officer, Mike grew up traveling often -- his family lived on or near military bases ranging from Key West to San Diego to Frankfurt, Germany -- before he graduated from high school near Washington, D.C. in 1971. After finishing undergraduate school at the College of William and Mary in 1975 with a degree in Philosophy, Mike spent several years traveling and working a variety of jobs that included sorting mail for the U.S. postal service, waiting tables and tending bar, driving a dump truck, repairing skis, stocking meat and produce at a small grocery store near Chicago, working as a golf course greenskeeper, and managing a convenience store in the Rocky Mountain ski resort town of Breckenridge, Colorado.
Mike taught high school English in Virginia Beach for one year before earning his master's degree in 1981 at William and Mary, where he wrote his thesis on Beat author and poet Jack Kerouac. While in graduate school, Mike worked as a writer and photographer for the college's publications office and wrote a weekly column for The Virginia Gazette newspaper in Williamsburg, which led to a job as a staff writer for Commonwealth magazine, then as a features writer for The Virginian-Pilot newspaper in Norfolk, where he worked until 1993. Mike still lives in Norfolk, where his daughter Jamie graduated from high school in 2003. Jamie subsequently earned her undergraduate degree from Bucknell University and her master's degree from William and Mary in Higher Education Student Services.
Besides his books, Mike's writing has appeared in Sports Illustrated, Fortune, Reader's Digest, The Oxford American, People magazine, and The Washington Post, and has been included three times in Best Sports Stories, published annually by The Sporting News. A chapter Mike wrote on journalistic research methods was included in The Complete Book of Feature Writing (Writer's Digest Books, 1991), and his writing on Jack Kerouac has been included in Studies in American Fiction and the QPB Literary Review. Mike is on the Editorial Advisory Board of DoubleTake magazine, and he has taught narrative nonfiction writing at the College of William and Mary and at Old Dominion University, where he delivered the Commencement Address to ODU's Class of 2006.
Mike taught high school English in Virginia Beach for one year before earning his master's degree in 1981 at William and Mary, where he wrote his thesis on Beat author and poet Jack Kerouac. While in graduate school, Mike worked as a writer and photographer for the college's publications office and wrote a weekly column for The Virginia Gazette newspaper in Williamsburg, which led to a job as a staff writer for Commonwealth magazine, then as a features writer for The Virginian-Pilot newspaper in Norfolk, where he worked until 1993. Mike still lives in Norfolk, where his daughter Jamie graduated from high school in 2003. Jamie subsequently earned her undergraduate degree from Bucknell University and her master's degree from William and Mary in Higher Education Student Services.
Besides his books, Mike's writing has appeared in Sports Illustrated, Fortune, Reader's Digest, The Oxford American, People magazine, and The Washington Post, and has been included three times in Best Sports Stories, published annually by The Sporting News. A chapter Mike wrote on journalistic research methods was included in The Complete Book of Feature Writing (Writer's Digest Books, 1991), and his writing on Jack Kerouac has been included in Studies in American Fiction and the QPB Literary Review. Mike is on the Editorial Advisory Board of DoubleTake magazine, and he has taught narrative nonfiction writing at the College of William and Mary and at Old Dominion University, where he delivered the Commencement Address to ODU's Class of 2006.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews
July 24, 2013
Parker Young
Mrs. Dunlavey
Summer reading
Eagle Blue
The Summarization of Eagle Blue
The idea of doing what the author did is fascinating to me. Michael D’orso went through what most people would’ve found excruciatingly boring. He spent most of his time living with the young boys of Fort Yukon, traveling several hundred miles to play a single game that lasts only an hour. Spending the nights in schoolrooms with only the boys and the coach for companions. That in of itself is amazing, yet he managed to take it to the next level by going into the depth of the obstacles that the boys face.
At the beginning, it had interviews with Dave the coach, Matt the Star of the team, and Paul, Matt’s uncle, and former star player. It also goes into some depth about what goes on within the town. The town’s men for the most part despise Dave; for they believe that they could each do a better job than Dave, yet no one wants to put forth the effort. At the start of the season there is high hopes on the team by the town, most of the boys however, have to overcome an obstacle that may keep them from playing… Grades. For a short skit of games the team only have seven members to play with, for the up-tempo style of ball that Fort Yukon always plays its crucial blow. Everyone however is able to pull their grades up for the state tournament. Though they lost the chance to play for a state title, they did manage to take third place. Though most of the boys have hopes for next season at a chance for redemption, they might not get the chance, with the possibility that the basketball funds will be cut. Even if that doesn’t stop the team the possibility of a land swap with the government that might disperse the town could be the end of Fort Yukon basketball, and Fort Yukon.
The book in my opinion was a thriller, with you never knowing what was going to happen. It had me guessing if anyone was going to be in trouble and not be able to play, or if the proposed land swap was going to happen or not. I wish they made a sequel to pick up where they had left off. I would definitely recommend this to anyone that enjoys sports.
396
Mrs. Dunlavey
Summer reading
Eagle Blue
The Summarization of Eagle Blue
The idea of doing what the author did is fascinating to me. Michael D’orso went through what most people would’ve found excruciatingly boring. He spent most of his time living with the young boys of Fort Yukon, traveling several hundred miles to play a single game that lasts only an hour. Spending the nights in schoolrooms with only the boys and the coach for companions. That in of itself is amazing, yet he managed to take it to the next level by going into the depth of the obstacles that the boys face.
At the beginning, it had interviews with Dave the coach, Matt the Star of the team, and Paul, Matt’s uncle, and former star player. It also goes into some depth about what goes on within the town. The town’s men for the most part despise Dave; for they believe that they could each do a better job than Dave, yet no one wants to put forth the effort. At the start of the season there is high hopes on the team by the town, most of the boys however, have to overcome an obstacle that may keep them from playing… Grades. For a short skit of games the team only have seven members to play with, for the up-tempo style of ball that Fort Yukon always plays its crucial blow. Everyone however is able to pull their grades up for the state tournament. Though they lost the chance to play for a state title, they did manage to take third place. Though most of the boys have hopes for next season at a chance for redemption, they might not get the chance, with the possibility that the basketball funds will be cut. Even if that doesn’t stop the team the possibility of a land swap with the government that might disperse the town could be the end of Fort Yukon basketball, and Fort Yukon.
The book in my opinion was a thriller, with you never knowing what was going to happen. It had me guessing if anyone was going to be in trouble and not be able to play, or if the proposed land swap was going to happen or not. I wish they made a sequel to pick up where they had left off. I would definitely recommend this to anyone that enjoys sports.
396
March 14, 2017
Alaskan Basketball – A Way of Life
On the surface, Eagle Blue tracks the struggle of a boys’ basketball team from Ft. Yukon, Alaska, on their way to compete in the Alaska State Championship. But, it’s about much more. Michael D’orso burrows deep into the village of Ft. Yukon, where we learn how important basketball is, not only to the kids playing it, but to the entire community. He personalizes this Athabascan Gwich’in population. We get close up and personal with these folks, beyond the everyday facades. Dave Bridges, their coach of the last six seasons is a fully rounded, complete person. He’s not your stereotypical sports coach, mouthing inane clichés, but a thoughtful, compassionate man, who more than anything, wants to help his players grow into responsible, young adults, who feel pride in their accomplishments. The high school ball players come to life, too. Matt Shewfelt is the star of the team. We watch him rise above his broken home, beset by dysfunction and poverty. Cocky and talented, he knows the road to a State Championship is filled with rutted potholes, but he’s not about to let that get in his way.
Ft. Yukon suffers from the same ailments that plague so many of the Arctic’s bush communities: poverty, rampant alcoholism, domestic violence, rape and suicide. But basketball is the congealing healer. It is a source of pride. It’s an activity that almost everyone in the village agrees is a great thing. Paradoxically enough, it’s also a source of sorrow. Time is the bastard. Just like the game is governed by the clock, so is everything else. When the game ends time becomes the enemy. Especially for those who once roamed the courts. They look back. Life between the hoops from the rear view mirror shines more brightly. In Ft, Yukon, the fathers hold onto those victorious memories and how they alone, uplifted the spirit of their village. Now, for most of these men, the victories are only shimmering remembrances – life in the village as full grown adults is far more perplexing – the wins – far and few between.
On an altogether different vein, D’orso mixes in exquisite play-by-play. Whether you’re an aficionado or not, you can readily appreciate the punchy action driving up and down the boards. In an important NIT tournament, the yet untested Ft. Yukon Eagles are playing Su-Valley, a more highly rated, respected team. “Matt takes the inbound pass, comes up the floor as if he’s got all the time in the world. Four seconds. He pushes the ball toward the right side, to half-court. Three. He crosses to the middle, splitting two Su-Valley guards. Two. He pulls up at the top of the key, flanked by two more defenders. One. He pump-fakes one player into the air, leans past the other and shoots. The ball arches high toward the ceiling, nearly grazing the rafters. The gym falls silent, every eye on the shot. Zero. The halftime horn sounds. Swish. The ball splits the net, and the place goes berserk.”
D’orso complements the floor action by adding ample background to the schools and players Ft. Yukon squares off against. One of the schools they compete against is located in reclusive Ninilchik, populated by a Russian sect who broke off from the “Russian Orthodox Church in the mid-seventeenth century…” This miniscule community is known for its distinctive dress - females “wear talichkas (long, floor length dresses)” while the males “dress in rubakhas (long-sleeved, ornately embroidered, loose fitting collarless shirts).” Aside from their religious beliefs and unique garb, they share a common bond with our Ft. Yukon players – they love basketball.
Rippling throughout is the drama, which wraps and weaves around the team. Everyone’s a coach. All the men – former players or not – know they could do a better job than Dave. Not that any of them are willing to accept that responsibility. When Dave quits after a traumatic courtside incident, where he publicly berates one of his players – humiliating himself in front of the entire community, not a single resident steps up to the plate to fill his shoes. Any of them could have used that opportunity to fill the void, show their coaching bona fides and wear the coaching mantle. Not a single person made that move. Much easier to bitch and groan.
At the end, it doesn’t really matter if the young, Eagle Blue warriors win the State Championship or not (no spoilers, here) – for they’ve already captured our hearts and minds with their steadfast determination and commitment to never saying quit.
Original review published in Anchorage Press on March 8, 2017.
On the surface, Eagle Blue tracks the struggle of a boys’ basketball team from Ft. Yukon, Alaska, on their way to compete in the Alaska State Championship. But, it’s about much more. Michael D’orso burrows deep into the village of Ft. Yukon, where we learn how important basketball is, not only to the kids playing it, but to the entire community. He personalizes this Athabascan Gwich’in population. We get close up and personal with these folks, beyond the everyday facades. Dave Bridges, their coach of the last six seasons is a fully rounded, complete person. He’s not your stereotypical sports coach, mouthing inane clichés, but a thoughtful, compassionate man, who more than anything, wants to help his players grow into responsible, young adults, who feel pride in their accomplishments. The high school ball players come to life, too. Matt Shewfelt is the star of the team. We watch him rise above his broken home, beset by dysfunction and poverty. Cocky and talented, he knows the road to a State Championship is filled with rutted potholes, but he’s not about to let that get in his way.
Ft. Yukon suffers from the same ailments that plague so many of the Arctic’s bush communities: poverty, rampant alcoholism, domestic violence, rape and suicide. But basketball is the congealing healer. It is a source of pride. It’s an activity that almost everyone in the village agrees is a great thing. Paradoxically enough, it’s also a source of sorrow. Time is the bastard. Just like the game is governed by the clock, so is everything else. When the game ends time becomes the enemy. Especially for those who once roamed the courts. They look back. Life between the hoops from the rear view mirror shines more brightly. In Ft, Yukon, the fathers hold onto those victorious memories and how they alone, uplifted the spirit of their village. Now, for most of these men, the victories are only shimmering remembrances – life in the village as full grown adults is far more perplexing – the wins – far and few between.
On an altogether different vein, D’orso mixes in exquisite play-by-play. Whether you’re an aficionado or not, you can readily appreciate the punchy action driving up and down the boards. In an important NIT tournament, the yet untested Ft. Yukon Eagles are playing Su-Valley, a more highly rated, respected team. “Matt takes the inbound pass, comes up the floor as if he’s got all the time in the world. Four seconds. He pushes the ball toward the right side, to half-court. Three. He crosses to the middle, splitting two Su-Valley guards. Two. He pulls up at the top of the key, flanked by two more defenders. One. He pump-fakes one player into the air, leans past the other and shoots. The ball arches high toward the ceiling, nearly grazing the rafters. The gym falls silent, every eye on the shot. Zero. The halftime horn sounds. Swish. The ball splits the net, and the place goes berserk.”
D’orso complements the floor action by adding ample background to the schools and players Ft. Yukon squares off against. One of the schools they compete against is located in reclusive Ninilchik, populated by a Russian sect who broke off from the “Russian Orthodox Church in the mid-seventeenth century…” This miniscule community is known for its distinctive dress - females “wear talichkas (long, floor length dresses)” while the males “dress in rubakhas (long-sleeved, ornately embroidered, loose fitting collarless shirts).” Aside from their religious beliefs and unique garb, they share a common bond with our Ft. Yukon players – they love basketball.
Rippling throughout is the drama, which wraps and weaves around the team. Everyone’s a coach. All the men – former players or not – know they could do a better job than Dave. Not that any of them are willing to accept that responsibility. When Dave quits after a traumatic courtside incident, where he publicly berates one of his players – humiliating himself in front of the entire community, not a single resident steps up to the plate to fill his shoes. Any of them could have used that opportunity to fill the void, show their coaching bona fides and wear the coaching mantle. Not a single person made that move. Much easier to bitch and groan.
At the end, it doesn’t really matter if the young, Eagle Blue warriors win the State Championship or not (no spoilers, here) – for they’ve already captured our hearts and minds with their steadfast determination and commitment to never saying quit.
Original review published in Anchorage Press on March 8, 2017.
May 2, 2016
I thought that Eagle Blue by Michael D’Orso was a great book and would rate it 4.5/5 stars. The author provides a great balance between writing about basketball and Alaskan tradition. The premise of the book is about a team of high school basketball players in Fort Yukon Alaska. In order to even participate in the sport these players and coaches gave a tremendous effort and went through numerous obstacles to get where they did by the end of the book. Saying this, I thought overall this book was very well written and I thought that the blend of Alaskan culture and basketball made this a very unique read.
The author throughout the read includes great imagery of the state of Alaska and to explain how playing basketball is much different there than in one of your other states. The author goes on to state on page 23, “Evening, and the sky over Fort Yukon is dancing. It shimmers with waves of diaphanous light. The billow and bend, celestial ribbons of green, blue and violet swirling in from the north, arcing over the village and whirling off toward the mountains that lie to the south.”.This sentence displays that the author wrote this book based around basketball but also periodically dropped some tidbits about Alaska as well as included sensory details.
In conclusion, Eagle Blue is a great read due to how the book had various facets that made this much more than an average basketball book. The author did a great job on researching Alaskan ways of life and combining that with a cinderella basketball story. I definitely would recommend people to read this book especially if you like stories that include perseverance.
The author throughout the read includes great imagery of the state of Alaska and to explain how playing basketball is much different there than in one of your other states. The author goes on to state on page 23, “Evening, and the sky over Fort Yukon is dancing. It shimmers with waves of diaphanous light. The billow and bend, celestial ribbons of green, blue and violet swirling in from the north, arcing over the village and whirling off toward the mountains that lie to the south.”.This sentence displays that the author wrote this book based around basketball but also periodically dropped some tidbits about Alaska as well as included sensory details.
In conclusion, Eagle Blue is a great read due to how the book had various facets that made this much more than an average basketball book. The author did a great job on researching Alaskan ways of life and combining that with a cinderella basketball story. I definitely would recommend people to read this book especially if you like stories that include perseverance.
Want to read
November 2, 2012If you like books about basketball or about life in the Alaskan wilderness, then this is a book for you.
"Eagle Blue", written by Michael D'orso, is about a basketball team in the yukon of Alaska, the REAL wilderness as it is worded in the book, not like Anchorage, a so called "big city". It starts out describing life and what it's like living in a village of about a couple hundred people, and it is very descriptive and vivid, you can just about picture everything the author put in the book. Then it goes off and talks about the different people in the town, the players, and their families. Then finally, after a few chapters of description, it finally gets into the basketball, the team of Fort Yukon. The coach(an airstrip worker) is a very good and skilled coach, and has had successful teams throughout his few years he's been coaching there. And this is supposed to be the year they make it, all the way to state and possibly win the division 5 title, the first for this little small 5a team.
This book is a very good read, and is suitable to me for ages from 15-18, it's haunting, tender, and somewhat touching. Like all great sports books, it isn't about sports at all, but about manhood, hope, and dreams, and the Fort Yukon boys have been dreaming of this for years, their chance to play on the big court, in front of thousands to watch, watch this small little 5a school win it all. And their only hope, is that they don't get lost in the gym.
"Eagle Blue", written by Michael D'orso, is about a basketball team in the yukon of Alaska, the REAL wilderness as it is worded in the book, not like Anchorage, a so called "big city". It starts out describing life and what it's like living in a village of about a couple hundred people, and it is very descriptive and vivid, you can just about picture everything the author put in the book. Then it goes off and talks about the different people in the town, the players, and their families. Then finally, after a few chapters of description, it finally gets into the basketball, the team of Fort Yukon. The coach(an airstrip worker) is a very good and skilled coach, and has had successful teams throughout his few years he's been coaching there. And this is supposed to be the year they make it, all the way to state and possibly win the division 5 title, the first for this little small 5a team.
This book is a very good read, and is suitable to me for ages from 15-18, it's haunting, tender, and somewhat touching. Like all great sports books, it isn't about sports at all, but about manhood, hope, and dreams, and the Fort Yukon boys have been dreaming of this for years, their chance to play on the big court, in front of thousands to watch, watch this small little 5a school win it all. And their only hope, is that they don't get lost in the gym.
October 20, 2010
A really great sports book. But like the jacket says, good sports books are rarely just about sports, and "Eagle Blue" is no exception. It's about friendship, teamwork, David vs. Goliath, and a lot more. This book came by way of suggestion from one of my friends I teach with. Isn't that really the best way to get a book? "Here, take this. I loved it and I think you will too."
This book follows a high school basketball team from a small town in very, very rural Alaska. The town and the team are comprised of native Alaskans (non-Inuit). Their passion for the sport is what binds the town together. It was like "Hoosiers" in the snow...not really, it's far more complex and interesting than that, but you get my point.
This book is up for grabs here in Vallarta if anyone is interested. A really pleasurable read.
This book follows a high school basketball team from a small town in very, very rural Alaska. The town and the team are comprised of native Alaskans (non-Inuit). Their passion for the sport is what binds the town together. It was like "Hoosiers" in the snow...not really, it's far more complex and interesting than that, but you get my point.
This book is up for grabs here in Vallarta if anyone is interested. A really pleasurable read.
September 1, 2016
Eagle Blue was a very good book because it really showed how basketball affects many small towns in Alaska. The book talks about how these teams practice almost every day and still show up to the freezing cold gyms even when the temperatures reach down to 60 below zero. The book focuses on the town's road to the state tournament and how their heartbreaking loss in the championship game went down the year before. A reason why this book is good is that this team has to overcome many challenges to even play their basketball games. Sometimes the weather is too cold to fly to a different city, and the team sometimes can lose many players because the players grades aren't good enough to be eligible to play. This book focuses on the importance and struggles of having a basketball team in the small towns of Alaska.
January 27, 2008
Just a very solid book -- smart, sympathetic, well-written, well-researched. Lovely portrait of how hard it is to live in the Alaska bush, both as an adult and as a teenager, and how basketball (oddly enough, not hockey) pulls towns and families both together and apart.
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May 29, 2019I really how they choose a place that you wouldn't really think there would be a basketball team there. Well in the Arctic there is. This book is probably one of the best basketball books I have read. The main character is the best point guard in their " conference". This player is how I want to be when I play basketball5. He has obviously put in the work to get where he is now. That's something some people don't know how to do. They act like they are the best and no one can beat them. Until the time comes they get beat. Then they just quit. Only because they don't want to put the work in to get better.
March 9, 2017
The village of Fort Yukon sits eight miles above the Arctic Circle, deep in Alaska's "bush" country. The six hundred men, women and children who live there, almost all of them Athabasca Gwich'in Natives. Eagle Blue is about the Eagles, winners of six regional championships in a row, through the course of an entire 28-game season, from their first day of practice in late November to the Alaska State Championship Tournament in March. the lives of these fourteen boys, their families, and their coach, shadowing them through an Arctic winter of fifty-below-zero temperatures and near-round-the-clock darkness as the Eagles criss-cross Alaska by air, van, and snow machine.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in basketball. I disliked the beginning of the book because it was very slow and boring.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in basketball. I disliked the beginning of the book because it was very slow and boring.
October 20, 2014
In the book Eagle Blue by Michael D'orso, one of the main characters, Dave, goes through many conflicts throughout the book, fighting the blistering winters of Alaska, and also trying to coach a high school basketball team. Dave Bridges is the head coach of a basketball team in a small town called Fort Yukon, Alaska, known to everyone as the town of trouble. Every kid seems to get involved with trouble in this town, and that's what Dave is worried about. Before the first practice, he worried he wouldn't even have enough players to make a team, and even if he did, he knew that he would lose some players to either quitting or getting in trouble. When the first practice rolled around Dave was actually surprised of the turnout he got. Having 12 players coming to the first practice, and maybe even two more that couldn't make it. "We've got a lot to accomplish before January 13th." Dave begins. "The first thing you gotta do is get your lives together, get yourselves organized" (D'orso 63). Pretty much what Dave was saying here was that they have a lot of stuff to get done before the first game, and he doesn't want anyone's life outside of basketball to get in the way and ruin there season. "The teams that they face may be bigger than them. They may be even better. But one thing is constant, Dave makes sure of it. And that is that no one will be in better shape than the Fort Yukon boys" (D'orso 65). Dave disciplines his boys very well. He runs them until they puke, and he changes them all into better men. Dave took his team a long way. Way farther than anyone would've thought that this little team out of Fort Yukon would've gotten. They made it to the state tournament. "Dave likes the sound of that. He'll take time to savor it tonight, let the boys celebrate. Then tomorrow, they'll pack, gas up the van, and hit the road for the last time this season, for the drive Dave's been aiming since the first day of practice last November. The drive down to Anchorage" (D'orso 275). Fort Yukon had a bit of success in the state tournament, making it all the way to the state championship, but in a heartbreaker, Dave's team came up short, but he was still very proud of his players. Dave Bridges may have been a very smart coach that everyone will know him for taking a small town to the state championship, but all those 12 boys knew that he was much more than that. He changed each and every one of there lives for the better.
Eagle Blue is a sports fiction book written by Michael D'orso. I would recommend this to anyone who loves a book filled with action and lots of conflict, but I would mostly recommend this to people who have a love for basketball, or someone who is always pulling for the underdog. The only thing I didn't like about this book was it started off slow, and hard to get into, but once I got into it, the book kept me on the edge of my seat rooting for this small town basketball team out of Fort Yukon, Alaska. Some connections I can make with this book is that I have a love for basketball. It is one of my favorite sports, and I wouldn't be the same person without out. Another connection I made with this book is that it reminded me of the movie "Hoosiers". This movie was about a small high school basketball team in Indiana that pulled a miracle and had an amazing season, winning the state championship. This reminded me a lot of Eagle Blue. Even though it starts out slow, Eagle Blue will go down as one of your favorite sports books, and you will always get the chills of the basketball team from Fort Yukon when you look back at it.
Eagle Blue is a sports fiction book written by Michael D'orso. I would recommend this to anyone who loves a book filled with action and lots of conflict, but I would mostly recommend this to people who have a love for basketball, or someone who is always pulling for the underdog. The only thing I didn't like about this book was it started off slow, and hard to get into, but once I got into it, the book kept me on the edge of my seat rooting for this small town basketball team out of Fort Yukon, Alaska. Some connections I can make with this book is that I have a love for basketball. It is one of my favorite sports, and I wouldn't be the same person without out. Another connection I made with this book is that it reminded me of the movie "Hoosiers". This movie was about a small high school basketball team in Indiana that pulled a miracle and had an amazing season, winning the state championship. This reminded me a lot of Eagle Blue. Even though it starts out slow, Eagle Blue will go down as one of your favorite sports books, and you will always get the chills of the basketball team from Fort Yukon when you look back at it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 21, 2013
For some kids it’s just a game, something that keeps them busy during the long months of winter. In the book Eagle Blue by Michael D’Orso he depicts the life of the young boys that play on the basketball team in Alaska. The kids of Fort Yukon live and breathe basketball. It’s the heart and soul of the town, the time of the year that everybody lives for. For the members of the Fort Yukon boy’s basketball team basketball has a greater meaning than just being a sport, it resembles hope and freedom.
The book Eagle Blue is based off a true story. It was written by an American author that lived in the lower forty eight and was astonished when he heard about the team up in Alaska. He did research and talked to the local people of the village to gather as much information as he could to write a compelling story about the team.
Throughout the book, D’Orso clues us in on how much basketball truly means to the kids. Living in a remote part of the country with little money and not much to do, basketball proved to save the boys. It was often referred to in the book how big of a problem drugs were in the village. With their involvement in the sport, they were able to keep away from the drugs which had already ruined the lives of many living in Alaska. In addition, with little money to ever travel the boys of Fort Yukon never got to experience much outside of their village. Basketball helped with this as well. As they traveled to different cities around the state by plane the team was exposed to different cultures and viewpoints. Not only did it do this, but it led them to believe that there was far more in the world than just the village. It opened up their minds to what they could become in life.
I believe that I couldn’t put this book down because I could connect to the kids in the story so well. We both shared the love for the game of basketball and this was the main reason I loved reading the book. From the time I checked it out until I finished, I was intrigued the whole time. Another part of the book that I liked was that it was written in plain English and very easy to read, somewhat too easy. While I do like to be able to understand what I’m reading I also appreciate a challenge and variety of words. This book seemed to lack that. I’m confident that a fifth grader could have read and understood the book as well as I did. Nonetheless, it was the book I chose to read and I did enjoy it. It did have decent context inside it, just an easier way to understand it.
After reading this book, I have newfound knowledge and respect for the game of basketball. I was able to experience what it meant to someone else in comparison to myself. Overall I would give this book a 4 star rating. Although I did enjoy reading it, as mentioned before I wish that it would have been written at a higher level. Even though I liked this book it’s not for everyone. I would recommend it to anyone of slightly younger age that has a profound love for basketball.
The book Eagle Blue is based off a true story. It was written by an American author that lived in the lower forty eight and was astonished when he heard about the team up in Alaska. He did research and talked to the local people of the village to gather as much information as he could to write a compelling story about the team.
Throughout the book, D’Orso clues us in on how much basketball truly means to the kids. Living in a remote part of the country with little money and not much to do, basketball proved to save the boys. It was often referred to in the book how big of a problem drugs were in the village. With their involvement in the sport, they were able to keep away from the drugs which had already ruined the lives of many living in Alaska. In addition, with little money to ever travel the boys of Fort Yukon never got to experience much outside of their village. Basketball helped with this as well. As they traveled to different cities around the state by plane the team was exposed to different cultures and viewpoints. Not only did it do this, but it led them to believe that there was far more in the world than just the village. It opened up their minds to what they could become in life.
I believe that I couldn’t put this book down because I could connect to the kids in the story so well. We both shared the love for the game of basketball and this was the main reason I loved reading the book. From the time I checked it out until I finished, I was intrigued the whole time. Another part of the book that I liked was that it was written in plain English and very easy to read, somewhat too easy. While I do like to be able to understand what I’m reading I also appreciate a challenge and variety of words. This book seemed to lack that. I’m confident that a fifth grader could have read and understood the book as well as I did. Nonetheless, it was the book I chose to read and I did enjoy it. It did have decent context inside it, just an easier way to understand it.
After reading this book, I have newfound knowledge and respect for the game of basketball. I was able to experience what it meant to someone else in comparison to myself. Overall I would give this book a 4 star rating. Although I did enjoy reading it, as mentioned before I wish that it would have been written at a higher level. Even though I liked this book it’s not for everyone. I would recommend it to anyone of slightly younger age that has a profound love for basketball.
January 19, 2016
Eagle Blue written by Michael D'Orso is a book that takes you on the journey of the small town's basketball team in Fort Yukon as they strive for one common goal, to win the state championship. This goal can not be completed without testing each player's endurance, work ethic and skills along the way. Fort Yukon is a high school in a small village just above the Arctic Circle. There seems to be nothing that the townspeople can do to escape the cold winters and their poor living conditions. Many people struggle to stay on their feet but a small high school's basketball team in the town of a Fort Yukon lifts them up during the tough times. Although only 32 students were enrolled into Fort Yukon in 2004, fourteen boys out of the 32 students joined the basketball team. For these fourteen boys, it was an escape from their harsh lives. The author explains the players hardships and individual success on their long journey through the basketball season as well as their daily lives. Further into the book you start to understand that basketball for them isn't only about a game, it's about a lifestyle, sacrifice and how one small group of boys turned into a family.
There are many strengths in this book. In my opinion the biggest strengths in this book was how the author described the kids lives and how they live and all of the adversity they go through on a daily basis. While reading this you get to know each kid on the team very well. D'Orso makes you understand what it's like to be one of them and you realize how hard they work to be the best person they can be. The author was also very successful in setting the tone and setting. During parts of the book, he wrote about their games and it almost makes it feel like you're in the crowd watching.
The only weaknesses I see for someone reading this book is that for people who are not into sports or basketball, this is not necessarily the book for you due to the fact that it is about basketball and it is so in depth. Without knowledge of how basketball works and the language of it, it can be hard to take away the full impact of the language the author uses, which severely dulls down the book.
I would give this book four stars because I greatly enjoyed this book. I learned much about work ethic and the drive to be a better person, along with basketball information. I also learned how basketball is more than just a game and it can even change people's lives. Throughout the book the writing was intense and inspiring. The only reason why I would not give this book a five is because not everyone knows and had a passion for basketball, and if you do not, then this might not be the book for you. Even if you do not know much about basketball it is still a great uplifting book. If you want to learn about basketball and the hardships many people in the world have to face and what you can do to get through it I would strongly suggest this book.
December 9, 2011
Eagle Blue by Michael D’Orso is a very exciting, fantastic, and entertaining book. This book was fun to read and also easy to read. I think people who don’t play sports or even enjoy sports should read this book because it wasn’t all about sports. It was also about the everyday lives of teenage boys.
This book is about a 1A basketball team from Fort Yukon, Alaska. The kids on this 1A team play with their heart - all of it. These kids play in several tournaments against higher ranked teams that are in 2A and even 3A. Their coach, Dave, is a big part of this team’s future. He is one of the best coaches in 1A basketball in the whole state of Alaska because he keeps a cool head during the games. He is also very intelligent in the overall game of basketball.
During the season, some of the kids run into trouble with academic eligibility and they can’t participate in the games. Plus, some of the kids don’t care and are more involved in smoking and chewing tobacco. However, when all the kids would be eligible for a game, they would have to vote for two kids who wouldn't play in the next game. This would sometimes cause an issue when all the kids were eligible to play in the game.
Coach Dave is such a good coach for Fort Yukon High School that by the end of the season, a first time player on their team named Josh turned into one of the team’s best players. Also, a boy named Derek developed a lot over the season and became one of the team’s best tall players by the end of the season.
This Fort Yukon 1A division team went through a lot during its basketball season. They traveled all over the state of Alaska just to play in their basketball games. They beat numerous 2A and 3A basketball teams who were either varsity or junior varsity teams. Whenever they would play other 1A teams, they would win by many points.
In conclusion, I thought Michael D’Orso put this non-fiction novel together nicely and knows how to write a good book. Eagle Blue is a great book about young teenagers going on a journey from their small hometown of Fort Yukon all the way to the big city of Fairbanks. I would rate this non-fiction novel with 4 out of 5 stars.
This book is about a 1A basketball team from Fort Yukon, Alaska. The kids on this 1A team play with their heart - all of it. These kids play in several tournaments against higher ranked teams that are in 2A and even 3A. Their coach, Dave, is a big part of this team’s future. He is one of the best coaches in 1A basketball in the whole state of Alaska because he keeps a cool head during the games. He is also very intelligent in the overall game of basketball.
During the season, some of the kids run into trouble with academic eligibility and they can’t participate in the games. Plus, some of the kids don’t care and are more involved in smoking and chewing tobacco. However, when all the kids would be eligible for a game, they would have to vote for two kids who wouldn't play in the next game. This would sometimes cause an issue when all the kids were eligible to play in the game.
Coach Dave is such a good coach for Fort Yukon High School that by the end of the season, a first time player on their team named Josh turned into one of the team’s best players. Also, a boy named Derek developed a lot over the season and became one of the team’s best tall players by the end of the season.
This Fort Yukon 1A division team went through a lot during its basketball season. They traveled all over the state of Alaska just to play in their basketball games. They beat numerous 2A and 3A basketball teams who were either varsity or junior varsity teams. Whenever they would play other 1A teams, they would win by many points.
In conclusion, I thought Michael D’Orso put this non-fiction novel together nicely and knows how to write a good book. Eagle Blue is a great book about young teenagers going on a journey from their small hometown of Fort Yukon all the way to the big city of Fairbanks. I would rate this non-fiction novel with 4 out of 5 stars.
August 20, 2013
English 301
Summer Reading
Kirk Vesely-Jamison
In 1976 Fort Yukon was the talk of the town, winning regionals five years in a row. Now, with a school of thirty two kids including boys and girls, over half of the school plays 1A basketball at Fort Yukon. If they didn’t have basketball the school would lose students because they would skip school, not do their homework, or move to a different school to play basketball. Every year the team would travel hundreds of miles with just the players and Coach Dave sleeping in classrooms because they didn't have enough money to stay in hotels or anything fancy. Every year the coach would schedule a trip somewhere far in Alaska because he wanted to have the kids experience something new, knowing they would probably never get out of Fort Yukon. The weather at Fort Yukon was below zero almost every day, but that didn't stop them for doing their everyday job or going to school, because they knew if they didn't get their homework done by not going to school that they would be ineligible for basketball.
I chose the book Eagle Blue, because I can relate more with sports books. Also, I picked this book because it is based on a true story, and I can relate it to real life situations. This book reminds me of our school in Paxton because it has so many similarities. We don't have a great sports program, but it's building up in the last few years, just like Fort Yukon had been bad at basketball, but a couple years later, they built back up the program. Also, our school is small and we don't have a lot of kids in the sports program, but we have enough to play the sport, just like Fort Yukon. The main similarity is everyone in Paxton knows each other, like we are one big family, because in Fort Yukon everyone knows each other and they grew up together ever since they were young. I like the book, because it had a lot of excitement and not only was it about sports, it was about school, and teaching the kids to learn how to be responsible. The only thing I didn't like about the book is that it was very detailed, and it took a few chapters to get exciting.
385
Summer Reading
Kirk Vesely-Jamison
In 1976 Fort Yukon was the talk of the town, winning regionals five years in a row. Now, with a school of thirty two kids including boys and girls, over half of the school plays 1A basketball at Fort Yukon. If they didn’t have basketball the school would lose students because they would skip school, not do their homework, or move to a different school to play basketball. Every year the team would travel hundreds of miles with just the players and Coach Dave sleeping in classrooms because they didn't have enough money to stay in hotels or anything fancy. Every year the coach would schedule a trip somewhere far in Alaska because he wanted to have the kids experience something new, knowing they would probably never get out of Fort Yukon. The weather at Fort Yukon was below zero almost every day, but that didn't stop them for doing their everyday job or going to school, because they knew if they didn't get their homework done by not going to school that they would be ineligible for basketball.
I chose the book Eagle Blue, because I can relate more with sports books. Also, I picked this book because it is based on a true story, and I can relate it to real life situations. This book reminds me of our school in Paxton because it has so many similarities. We don't have a great sports program, but it's building up in the last few years, just like Fort Yukon had been bad at basketball, but a couple years later, they built back up the program. Also, our school is small and we don't have a lot of kids in the sports program, but we have enough to play the sport, just like Fort Yukon. The main similarity is everyone in Paxton knows each other, like we are one big family, because in Fort Yukon everyone knows each other and they grew up together ever since they were young. I like the book, because it had a lot of excitement and not only was it about sports, it was about school, and teaching the kids to learn how to be responsible. The only thing I didn't like about the book is that it was very detailed, and it took a few chapters to get exciting.
385
April 23, 2015
Eagle blue is a very well written book. It is about the author who follows the Alaskan high school, Fort Yukon, and their Men’s Basketball team through their season, through their hardships. Throughout their 28 games the team had more than their fair share of problems. Ranging from grandmothers who passed away, to having to go through of shuffling their schedule to play different teams who are either eligible or ineligible.
The author Michael D’Orso uses mostly a narrative style of writing throughout the book, making it easy to read. The book overall reads like a fiction book with some suspense and it is also keeps your interest, much to the credit of D’Orso. What kept me reading is the fact that the team went through such hardships to get where they were at the end of the book. They fought adversity in the Native American community and the adversity that comes with being Native American.
The most interesting part of the whole book to me was when one of the team member’s grandmother died and the whole Native community in the bush town of Alaska and other surrounding towns came together as a society. The gym at Fort Yukon was packed. This was interesting to me because in a city like Lincoln, the whole city would not come together for one death. This is the contrary in a smaller community where everyone is tight-knit and knows everyone else. This ties in to the major idea of the book, which is community. This is evident throughout the story when the community of Fort Yukon bands together around their basketball team. The least interesting point of the book however is when the author describes every detail of the boring games that they blow out the other teams in.
The author used basic, not complex, words throughout the book which makes it easier to understand. The book made me think critically because it made me examine our community in Lincoln and how we can develop as a society and come together like the community in Fort Yukon.
The author Michael D’Orso uses mostly a narrative style of writing throughout the book, making it easy to read. The book overall reads like a fiction book with some suspense and it is also keeps your interest, much to the credit of D’Orso. What kept me reading is the fact that the team went through such hardships to get where they were at the end of the book. They fought adversity in the Native American community and the adversity that comes with being Native American.
The most interesting part of the whole book to me was when one of the team member’s grandmother died and the whole Native community in the bush town of Alaska and other surrounding towns came together as a society. The gym at Fort Yukon was packed. This was interesting to me because in a city like Lincoln, the whole city would not come together for one death. This is the contrary in a smaller community where everyone is tight-knit and knows everyone else. This ties in to the major idea of the book, which is community. This is evident throughout the story when the community of Fort Yukon bands together around their basketball team. The least interesting point of the book however is when the author describes every detail of the boring games that they blow out the other teams in.
The author used basic, not complex, words throughout the book which makes it easier to understand. The book made me think critically because it made me examine our community in Lincoln and how we can develop as a society and come together like the community in Fort Yukon.
March 18, 2016
The story, Eagle Blue by Michael D'orso there is a basketball team located in Northern Alaska, where they go through a lot of ups and downs throughout the basketball season.
Basketball season is just around the corner all the players are getting ready to try out for the 2004-2005 high school basketball team. This year a lot of people are wanting to play because last years Fort Yukon team went to the state 1A championship, but sadly lost in the final round. This year they are looking for redemption against there rivals. In Alaska basketball is all the boys have without basketball they don’t have anything only thing they have is to sit in a house all day with their families and go to school the next day and that’s their schedule 5 times a week. A couple of weeks go by and the season is about to start and all the players are excited to kick off the season. Fort Yukon's head coach for the basketball team plays a very important role in these kid's life by making sure they are being good and being respectful in the classrooms. Coach told the players if you are acting up and being rude they will not play at all on his team.
Two and a half months later the team was very good they went 12-2 in the regular season and they came 2nd in the division. Their point guard was their best player he had 20+ points every game so far. In the last game sadly he got hurt and had a season ending injury that forced the team too to try and figure a plan that would help them win and possible win states. Can Fort Yukon do it yes or no? One thing I liked about this book was it was about basketball and one of my favorite sports is Basketball so I was really interested in this book. Something that I really didn’t like was the story line was kind of a drag on, but besides that I would rate this book a four out of five.
Basketball season is just around the corner all the players are getting ready to try out for the 2004-2005 high school basketball team. This year a lot of people are wanting to play because last years Fort Yukon team went to the state 1A championship, but sadly lost in the final round. This year they are looking for redemption against there rivals. In Alaska basketball is all the boys have without basketball they don’t have anything only thing they have is to sit in a house all day with their families and go to school the next day and that’s their schedule 5 times a week. A couple of weeks go by and the season is about to start and all the players are excited to kick off the season. Fort Yukon's head coach for the basketball team plays a very important role in these kid's life by making sure they are being good and being respectful in the classrooms. Coach told the players if you are acting up and being rude they will not play at all on his team.
Two and a half months later the team was very good they went 12-2 in the regular season and they came 2nd in the division. Their point guard was their best player he had 20+ points every game so far. In the last game sadly he got hurt and had a season ending injury that forced the team too to try and figure a plan that would help them win and possible win states. Can Fort Yukon do it yes or no? One thing I liked about this book was it was about basketball and one of my favorite sports is Basketball so I was really interested in this book. Something that I really didn’t like was the story line was kind of a drag on, but besides that I would rate this book a four out of five.
June 2, 2010
Author spends a season attending every practice and game of a high school basketball team of Native Alaskans from a small village. Clearly written and often exciting. It helps that they had a great year (24-4, won a couple invitational tournaments as well as regional champs, 3rd in state, upset some bigger schools). He does a nice job of evoking the goofiness and high spirits of a team of high school boys, of covering the complicated village politics and a little of the larger cultural history and context (e.g., devastating effect of alcoholism in the community, outsized importance of high school games when there are no pro or college teams anywhere nearby and very little else to do).
It's mostly from the point of view of the coach, who gets a sympathetic portrait, not the individual kids. I had trouble keeping the kids distinguished from one another in my mind, a problem exacerbated by their being a deep and well-balanced team.
As someone who rants about NBC approach to covering the Olympics (more about the sports! less soap opera!), I never thought I'd say this, but I could have used a little more human interest and a little less blow-by-blow. Particularly in some of the regular season games they win easily, the narrative bogs down ("to open the third quarter Matt hit yet another three-pointers. After a steal by Wade, Tim cut backdoor, received the bounce pass, and made a layup. 38-22 Fort Yukon with 7 minutes to go." X 65).
At least I'll never complain about the cold in DC again -- at one point a cold snap ends and everybody rushes to spend some time outdoors......because the temperature has risen to minus 20 Farenheit.
It's mostly from the point of view of the coach, who gets a sympathetic portrait, not the individual kids. I had trouble keeping the kids distinguished from one another in my mind, a problem exacerbated by their being a deep and well-balanced team.
As someone who rants about NBC approach to covering the Olympics (more about the sports! less soap opera!), I never thought I'd say this, but I could have used a little more human interest and a little less blow-by-blow. Particularly in some of the regular season games they win easily, the narrative bogs down ("to open the third quarter Matt hit yet another three-pointers. After a steal by Wade, Tim cut backdoor, received the bounce pass, and made a layup. 38-22 Fort Yukon with 7 minutes to go." X 65).
At least I'll never complain about the cold in DC again -- at one point a cold snap ends and everybody rushes to spend some time outdoors......because the temperature has risen to minus 20 Farenheit.
September 19, 2014
Winters in Alaska are horrible; everybody knows this. The temperatures are beyond freezing and going outside in the frigid weather can’t be anywhere close to enjoyable. One would probably think the only sport possible at this time would be snowboarding or skiing. This book, Eagle Blue, shows us a different side of arctic Alaska. A small village named Fort Yukon in the remote arctic of Alaska has only 600 people, with its only connection to the outside world being one thing; their high school basketball team.
Every year during basketball season, the team braves the cold weather to play the game they love. The team is incredibly good, having won six straight regional championships due to their devoted coach and hard-working players. This great book focuses on the lives of these players and what it’s like to be living in a place like Fort Yukon. The team is gearing up to try to win yet another regional championship. Will they be able to do it or will they be stopped short by one of the other talented teams? Pick up this book today to find out!
Also by Michael D orso:
Oceana
Walking with the Wind
Like Judgment Day
Visit the author’s website at: http://www.mikedorso.com/index.phtml
Reviewed by Drew G., TAB@DBPL Reader advisor since 2012.
Every year during basketball season, the team braves the cold weather to play the game they love. The team is incredibly good, having won six straight regional championships due to their devoted coach and hard-working players. This great book focuses on the lives of these players and what it’s like to be living in a place like Fort Yukon. The team is gearing up to try to win yet another regional championship. Will they be able to do it or will they be stopped short by one of the other talented teams? Pick up this book today to find out!
Also by Michael D orso:
Oceana
Walking with the Wind
Like Judgment Day
Visit the author’s website at: http://www.mikedorso.com/index.phtml
Reviewed by Drew G., TAB@DBPL Reader advisor since 2012.
February 2, 2008
Part documentary, part Rudy, D’Orso takes us through an entire basketball season with the Fort Yukon Eagles in rural Alaska. This isn’t your typical high school team; the conditions and life in Arctic Alaska create quite unique circumstances for the players, their families, and their coach. There are only thirty-two kids in the entire Fort Yukon high school, yet they have one six consecutive regional championships. D’Orso takes us through practices, pre-game pep-talks, road trips, and even into the classroom and at home to give the reader a complete look at how this basketball team succeeds despite the odds against them. D’Orso supplements his sports tale with information on the village and its villagers, as well as fascinating history of the Alaskan wilderness.
The Eagles are not a perfect team, and D’Orso has no qualms about pointing out both personal and athletic flaws, but you can’t help but root for this team. The author has made a conscious effort to provide a fair and balanced depiction and include the point of view of his characters, and it shows. The historical background and depiction of life in the Arctic is fascinating and informative – who know Alaska and Hawaii could share the same record-high temperature? – but the focus is still on basketball. The detailed play-by-play descriptions of the games can be tedious, even for an avid sports fan, but D’Orso is able to build suspense as if the game is happening right in front of you. Highly recommended for sports fans.
The Eagles are not a perfect team, and D’Orso has no qualms about pointing out both personal and athletic flaws, but you can’t help but root for this team. The author has made a conscious effort to provide a fair and balanced depiction and include the point of view of his characters, and it shows. The historical background and depiction of life in the Arctic is fascinating and informative – who know Alaska and Hawaii could share the same record-high temperature? – but the focus is still on basketball. The detailed play-by-play descriptions of the games can be tedious, even for an avid sports fan, but D’Orso is able to build suspense as if the game is happening right in front of you. Highly recommended for sports fans.
August 20, 2013
The book, Eagle Blue, is an amazing story about an arctic basketball teams struggles. I enjoyed almost every part of the book. The only part that I, personally, did not like was the first three to four chapters. In those chapters it was hard to understand some of the things the author was saying. For example, if the author was writing about one of the player’s home lives, he would talk about that player for the entire chapter except for a few random thoughts about other players. I found this very hard to follow. After reading the entire book, I found that the first couple of paragraphs were not needed at all, because he explained the players again in the later chapters. It was hard for me to continue reading the book after I read the first couple of chapters, but since every teacher says the boring part is in the beginning, I kept reading. I found that the book taught many valuable lessons. For example, the basketball coach of the Fort Yukon team based his coaching style off of teaching life lessons to his team. An example is even if his team lost a game, he never blew up at them, he let it roll off his back. I do not want to give too much away, but I will give you another example. After one of the biggest losses of the season, the Fort Yukon team did not get down or depressed. What they do instead is go eat a big supper and have a good time. So I would highly recommend reading this book. If you can get past the first couple of chapters, you will really enjoy it.
Word Count:281
Word Count:281
March 1, 2016
Eagle Blue illustrates Fort Yukon High School’s outstanding 2005 basketball season. It also demonstrates what life in urban Alaska is like. Author, Michael D’Orso, did an exceptional job of making me feel as though I was there experiencing every thrill or disappointment.
As I read further into the book I was able to connect with the characters, and learn in great detail what their lives are like. It also made me grateful to live in a place where it is not below zero almost every day, and such a small-populated area. Although this book was phenomenal, there were times when I wished I could learn a little bit more about the environment they live in. I also found it interesting how not only was basketball important to the team, but it was very important to the people living in Fort Yukon. One of my favorite scenes was after their last game at the restaurant. “But right now they’re here, a bunch of kids having a blast, into the moment, the meal, and the magic” (D’Orso 305). This was a powerful quote to end the book on. Although they may not have one state, they were still happy having the experience of a life time with their teammates.
Eagle Blue consists of D’Orso’s journey along with the team throughout their superb season.
His writing is very entertaining and attention-grabbing. I don’t think anyone else could have done as well as he did. He made it easy to follow along with the characters without having to go into too much detail.
As I read further into the book I was able to connect with the characters, and learn in great detail what their lives are like. It also made me grateful to live in a place where it is not below zero almost every day, and such a small-populated area. Although this book was phenomenal, there were times when I wished I could learn a little bit more about the environment they live in. I also found it interesting how not only was basketball important to the team, but it was very important to the people living in Fort Yukon. One of my favorite scenes was after their last game at the restaurant. “But right now they’re here, a bunch of kids having a blast, into the moment, the meal, and the magic” (D’Orso 305). This was a powerful quote to end the book on. Although they may not have one state, they were still happy having the experience of a life time with their teammates.
Eagle Blue consists of D’Orso’s journey along with the team throughout their superb season.
His writing is very entertaining and attention-grabbing. I don’t think anyone else could have done as well as he did. He made it easy to follow along with the characters without having to go into too much detail.
December 2, 2013
Dylan B
December 1, 2013
English 9
Goldberg
Eagle Blue by Michael D'Orso may be a good book for some. However for people like myself, this book felt boring and slow placed. But Eagle Blue is not a bad book in any means. This story to my interpretation is about a six time winning basketball team in Alaska going threw their 28 games in there new season hoping it will be there 7th victory. The fore teen boys faced with problems such as bad grades, drugs, and going to away games all while focusing on the big prize of winning. This book was more on the slow side and difficult to relate to for me since I do not share or understand many of the problems discussed in this novel. However this does not make this book bad but means that it is not a book of my taste. I would recommend this book to anyone who plays any sport or is a fan of basketball. This story also seems to follow the theme of never giving up witch is another thing to think about when recommending to some people. One major strength of this book is very good descriptions of what is going on With Eagle Blue be a relatively easy read, the book was over all well written to the point where I would like to read more from Michael D'Orso on different topics other then sports. Eagle Blue is a solid and enjoyable novel that was well thought out, inspirational, and is one for all the sports lovers out there.
December 1, 2013
English 9
Goldberg
Eagle Blue by Michael D'Orso may be a good book for some. However for people like myself, this book felt boring and slow placed. But Eagle Blue is not a bad book in any means. This story to my interpretation is about a six time winning basketball team in Alaska going threw their 28 games in there new season hoping it will be there 7th victory. The fore teen boys faced with problems such as bad grades, drugs, and going to away games all while focusing on the big prize of winning. This book was more on the slow side and difficult to relate to for me since I do not share or understand many of the problems discussed in this novel. However this does not make this book bad but means that it is not a book of my taste. I would recommend this book to anyone who plays any sport or is a fan of basketball. This story also seems to follow the theme of never giving up witch is another thing to think about when recommending to some people. One major strength of this book is very good descriptions of what is going on With Eagle Blue be a relatively easy read, the book was over all well written to the point where I would like to read more from Michael D'Orso on different topics other then sports. Eagle Blue is a solid and enjoyable novel that was well thought out, inspirational, and is one for all the sports lovers out there.
March 6, 2016
( Spoiler Alert )
This book takes you through the course of the season for the Fort Yukon Eagles season. They tell you about the community legends and some of the players that are around now. They take you through the life in a day of the Fort Yukon Eagles Coach, they also introduce you to some of the natives.they also tell you how they life when you go on away games. They take you through a couple of their games and tell you how the games went. Then they go into a blow out riveralry game to take them to the post season. After a few close games in the post season at the championship game they lose 69-44 with a record of 27-5.thats a few things I liked about the book
But their still are a few things I dislike about the book. For one thing I was glad to learn the history of the area but it took them a really long time to get into playing basketball. Or even talking about it and when they did they only did for a few minutes. Then one more thing it was only a one season book they way I look at it most books have 2 seasons where they get disappointed in the first season then they take victory over all. When they finally were defeated they didn't seem defeated but that's just my opinion
This book takes you through the course of the season for the Fort Yukon Eagles season. They tell you about the community legends and some of the players that are around now. They take you through the life in a day of the Fort Yukon Eagles Coach, they also introduce you to some of the natives.they also tell you how they life when you go on away games. They take you through a couple of their games and tell you how the games went. Then they go into a blow out riveralry game to take them to the post season. After a few close games in the post season at the championship game they lose 69-44 with a record of 27-5.thats a few things I liked about the book
But their still are a few things I dislike about the book. For one thing I was glad to learn the history of the area but it took them a really long time to get into playing basketball. Or even talking about it and when they did they only did for a few minutes. Then one more thing it was only a one season book they way I look at it most books have 2 seasons where they get disappointed in the first season then they take victory over all. When they finally were defeated they didn't seem defeated but that's just my opinion
October 11, 2013
Eagle Blue is a very exciting and entertaining book. It is about the story of the season of the 2005 Fort Yukon basketball team. The book is about the team as they play through one of their most challenging seasons yet. It talks about their lives and their travels as they travel all across Alaska to achieve their goal of winning the NIT tournament and the big State Tournament. The team goes through many challenges such as ineligibility, not to mention a crazy coach with a unique play style. This has to be one of my favorite books that I have read so far, and that is saying something considering the fact that I don't like to read a lot. But this book changes everything. Especially how the games and tournaments aren't always the main focus of the entire book. Or how the author mixes things up now and then with some events and nail-biters that you would not expect. I would recommend this book to any sports fans or comedy lovers, or suspense seekers. Anyone looking for a good book that will make them want to read it over and over and over again.
August 17, 2014
This book follows the events of the Alaskan, Fort Yukon eagles 'bush' basketball team over the course of a season. The term bush is used to denote the remoteness of some of the teams.
Alaska is remote and Fort Yukon, a village of 600 native Alaskans, is to be found pretty much in the middle of nowhere. Therefore one could expect the book to cover basketball, along with the day to day issues of life in such a remote and harsh environment. Up to a point it does do this but only up to a point.
The students, nearly all the characters, had little depth to them as the author spent little time with their development. The basketball games were reported on using formulaic, predictable, boring prose. Perhaps most disappointing was the short shrift given to the native Alaskan culture, of which this book barely scratches the surface.
The concept was fantastic but is ultimately a let down. It is certainly no Friday Night Lights, but just a superficial and disappointing report on basketball in Alaska.
Alaska is remote and Fort Yukon, a village of 600 native Alaskans, is to be found pretty much in the middle of nowhere. Therefore one could expect the book to cover basketball, along with the day to day issues of life in such a remote and harsh environment. Up to a point it does do this but only up to a point.
The students, nearly all the characters, had little depth to them as the author spent little time with their development. The basketball games were reported on using formulaic, predictable, boring prose. Perhaps most disappointing was the short shrift given to the native Alaskan culture, of which this book barely scratches the surface.
The concept was fantastic but is ultimately a let down. It is certainly no Friday Night Lights, but just a superficial and disappointing report on basketball in Alaska.
January 2, 2009
As an Anchorage Alaskan, this expanded and surprised my view of Alaska and made me feel like a real wimp for whining about going out in -10. I read it upon the recommendation of a Fort Yukon resident, one of the daughters of the coach it follows, and I was not disappointed. It very well spoke with the voice of the Fort Yukon villagers and gracefully threw in bits of history and explanation of how life is lived, how trapping and hunting works, the politics of Native corporations and oil exploration and Ted Stevens politics, etc. However, I found the play-by-play coverage of the basketball games a bit tedious since I don't know what many of the words mean. I guess overall this book would be more enjoyable for someone who plays and watched basketball--there was a lot of insider language. Also, the book ended abruptly without any of the beautiful exploration of people's home lives with which it began.
July 4, 2009
Eagle Blue, by Michael D'Orso, is a non-fiction novel about a high school basketball team in Alaska. They also have normal teenage lives though and some of them are facing problems in school with their grades. The basketball team and their coach, Dave, are the main characters. There is not one specific main character, but Matt is the best player on the team. The boys made it to the semi-finals of the Alaska State Championship Tournament. They had to play Newhalen, one of the best teams, and lost. Even though the boys lost, they stuck together as a team throughout the whole book.
I would recommend this book to teenage boys, or anyone who likes basketball. I enjoyed reading Eagle Blue because it combined humor with the intensity of basketball.
"On my honor I pledge that I have neither given nor recieved unauthorized help on this assignment, nor have I presented someone else's work as my own."
Rachel Pregel
I would recommend this book to teenage boys, or anyone who likes basketball. I enjoyed reading Eagle Blue because it combined humor with the intensity of basketball.
"On my honor I pledge that I have neither given nor recieved unauthorized help on this assignment, nor have I presented someone else's work as my own."
Rachel Pregel
December 12, 2011
The book is essentially a story about a basketball team. The author tries to make it more than that by talking about politics and race, but his treatment of the issues is pretty superficial. He also relies a bit on stereotypes to make his point, with the exception of his discussion of the ANWR drilling issue. He talks about the local politics of that issue in an interesting and straightforward way.
But all of these issues are just to fill out the book. It's primarily a story of a high school basketball team from a small native village in remote Alaska. The book follows the team over the course of the season. Each of the games is described in the book. Some of the games are summarized without much interesting detail, but others are described quite well.
I think it would make an excellent book for a young sports fan. There is some swearing, and drugs and alcohol play a small part, but nothing graphic or extreme.
But all of these issues are just to fill out the book. It's primarily a story of a high school basketball team from a small native village in remote Alaska. The book follows the team over the course of the season. Each of the games is described in the book. Some of the games are summarized without much interesting detail, but others are described quite well.
I think it would make an excellent book for a young sports fan. There is some swearing, and drugs and alcohol play a small part, but nothing graphic or extreme.
September 14, 2010
A really great sports book. But like the jacket says, good sports books are rarely just about sports, and "Eagle Blue" is no exception. It's about friendship, teamwork, David vs. Goliath, and a lot more. This book came by way of suggestion from one of my friends I teach with. Isn't that really the best way to get a book? "Here, take this. I loved it and I think you will too."
This book follows a high school basketball team from a small town in very, very rural Alaska. The town and the team are comprised of native Alaskans (non-Inuit). Their passion for the sport is what binds the town together. It was like "Hoosiers" in the snow...not really, it's far more complex and interesting than that, but you get my point.
This book is up for grabs here in Vallarta if anyone is interested. A really pleasurable read.
This book follows a high school basketball team from a small town in very, very rural Alaska. The town and the team are comprised of native Alaskans (non-Inuit). Their passion for the sport is what binds the town together. It was like "Hoosiers" in the snow...not really, it's far more complex and interesting than that, but you get my point.
This book is up for grabs here in Vallarta if anyone is interested. A really pleasurable read.
November 12, 2009
This book should have been better: it traces the basketball season of an amazing team from the tiny village of Fort Yukon. Native Americans, the Gwich'in, NOT Eskimo, struggle with a dearth of economic and educational opportunity, fading cultural influence, raging drug and alcohol abuse. The book deals with the extraordinary families and personalities of the fourteen boys on the team; with their struggles, hopes and failures; and with their dedicated and altruistic coach. However, there are no real happy endings in this book. The cold seems to seep through the narrative, expressing the despair, the lack of opportunity for real achievement, the odds against these families to make the book a bit of a downer.
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