Donovan McNabb

Children's Literature

Like the rest of the sport figures in Bradley's "Benchmark All-stars" series, Donovan McNabb is a superb athlete able to overcome multiple obstacles. Bradley begins the book with a description of McNabb's return to his position as a topflight quarterback less than two months after breaking his ankle in a game. McNabb showed incredible grit and determination by finishing out that game on an ankle no one realized was broken. As one of the first black quarterbacks in NFL history, it was not the first time he had had to overcome difficulties. When McNabb was 8 years old, his family moved from Chicago's South Side to an affluent suburb, one of the first black families to do so. Shortly thereafter, someone broke into and vandalized the house, leaving a trail of obscenities on the outside walls. The McNabbs refused to be chased away—Donovan went on to become both a football and basketball star in high school. When McNabb was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles, he was booed by some of the fans. But he refused to let it bother him. He just worked harder—and became not only a world class player, but true leader, the "heart and soul" of his team. A member of one rival team called him, "the ultimate weapon in the league." Once again, Bradley offers us a fine, engaging story with colorful photographs, interesting sidebars, an index, and a page of "stats"—what we have come to expect from this lively series of sports biographies. 2005, Benchmark Books/Marshall Cavendish, Ages 9 to 12.
—Dawn Elizabeth Hunt