Tony Hawk

Children's Literature

Bradley picked a slightly different kind of champion for this entry in his "Benchmark All-stars" series—Tony Hawk is as accomplished as the rest of Bradley's subjects but in skateboarding, a sport that is much "edgier" than the more traditional baseball, tennis, basketball, and football in other books in the series. Hawk was an extremely high energy boy, with an IQ of 144 to boot. Had he grown up in the 90s he probably would have been diagnosed with ADHD. After a difficult early childhood he discovered skateboarding and finally began to succeed at something he loved. With his father behind him all the way, he ground and kickturned his way to the top of a demanding but sometimes scorned sport. In fact, it was in large part Hawk's own prowess, amazing energy, and business acumen that made skateboarding the multimillion dollar sport that it is today, particularly popular with high energy youth who have money to burn. Like all the stars featured in this series, Hawk has times of triumph and despair. And through it all he works harder than anyone in the field, finally triumphing. That is one of the themes that runs through the series—these folks do not give up, no matter what. They are tough and talented, the best of the best. Even more than other books in the series, this might interest boys who crave action, who have a hard time getting into a book—boys like Tony Hawk. 2005, Benchmark Books/Marshall Cavendish, Ages 9 to 12.
—Dawn Elizabeth Hunt