Sooley

The perfect Christmas present

By: John Grisham

Narrated by: Dion Graham

The incredible new novel from international best-selling author John Grisham.

ONE MAN. ONE HOPE. ONCE CHANCE TO BECOME A LEGEND.

One man

Seventeen-year-old Samuel Sooleyman comes from a village in South Sudan, a war-torn country where one third of the population is a refugee. His great love is basketball: his prodigious leap and lightning speed make him an exceptional player. And it may also bring him his big chance: he has been noticed by a coach taking a youth team to the United States.

One hope

If he gets through the tournament, Samuel's life will change beyond recognition. But it's the longest of long shots. His talent is raw and uncoached. There are hundreds of better-known players ahead of him. And he must leave his family behind, at least at the beginning.

One chance

As American success beckons, devastating news reaches Samuel from home. Caught between his dream and the nightmare unfolding thousands of miles away, 'Sooley', as he's nicknamed by his classmates, must make hard choices about his future. This quiet, dedicated boy must do what no other player has achieved in the history of his chosen game: become a legend in 12 short months.

Global best-selling author John Grisham takes you to a different kind of court in this gripping and incredibly moving novel that showcases his storytelling powers in an entirely new light.

©2021 Belfry Holdings, Inc. (P)2021 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd

Critic reviews

"With every new book, I appreciate John Grisham a little more, for his compassion for the underdog, and his willingness to strike out in new directions." (Entertainment Weekly)

"A master of plotting and pacing." (New York Times)

For basketball fans

whilst I enjoyed this book I found the games commentary tedious as someone who is not a basketball fan and who doesn't understand the terminology, it was not that as easy to keep up with.
As usual the characters well well developed by the author who is one of my all time favourites, I should have chosen a book with a different subject/storyline.

Great Grisham, excellent narration!

Grisham at his best. A story that grips you and breaks your heart.
Dion Graham was PERFECT in every way!!

Outstanding

A griping and moving story of talent overcoming great obsticals and dedication to his family

One of Grisham’s best!

Fell in love with the main character, and like that it’s based on a real life conflict that the world chose to ignore. Very moving, very well written and told.

too much basketball

A good story as always from Grisham very well read.
But I forgot how much of a basketball fan john is and there is far too much really boring match descriptions with technical terms I didn’t fast forward but I was very tempted to the book would have been a third of the length if detailed descriptions of slamdunks whatever they are had been ignored

Nowhere near the "John Grisham" I know … !

What can I say, such a disappointment, and it's from one of my favourite authors, three-quarters of the book sounded like "commentary" from a live basketball game …!
I wouldn't recommend it!