Walter Dean Myers' latest book, Game is a tender sports story about the fragile line between winning and losing. Not only are there negative influences on the street, Drew's own self-doubt often challenges him. He is a talented, superstar basketball player but must first learn to play for the team before he can truly have "game."

We were able to interview Walter Dean Myers and ask him a little bit about Game and his career as a young adult author. The first three commenters to share their own "hoop dreams" (or any related high school sports story) gets a free copy of Game.

Ypulse Books: Drew knows a lot of kids who end up in jail, but you introduce us to two unlikely characters, Tomas' mother and father, who also "served time." Why this interesting juxtaposition?

Walter Dean Myers: When I was in Prague doing research on European basketball, I met a woman who did glass sculpture. It's her background I'm using in this book. My rationale is that I wanted Tomas to come from a background similar to Drew's instead of the usual "the white boy has everything" character.

YPB: Drew is reading Othello in his English class and talks about him a lot. He seems to identify with him. Why did you choose to highlight Othello as an important literary character in Game?

WDM: The central theme of Othello is Iago's duplicity based on his own character and not on race. I wanted to make the coach's decision more complex and force my characters to deal with the possibility that although Tomas and Drew are of different races, the reality of their conflict is not as simple as it might seem.

YPB: Drew's perception of "making-it" often seems to depend on just one game or even one play. What advice to do you have for kids who share this basketball dream?

WDM: Drew's perception of making it...excellent question. Drew's perception is good in that it models the success that he sees in his world. What I want him, and other teenagers to do, is to expand that world. To this end I bring in a ballplayer from Prague, Othello, and Tomas' parents.

YPB: You write about the basketball games themselves with such expertise and fine detail. Did you ever play seriously yourself? If so, do you still play recreationally?

WDM: I don't play anymore, but I played for years. I love the game. In watching the NCAA tournament, I'm reminded of the time I showed up with a team at William & Mary only to be told that I couldn't play because of the school's segregation policies at the time. Things do get better.

YPB: I really like the character of Jocelyn. She's smart and sassy, and she and her brother have a great relationship. Would you ever consider writing her story?

WDM: A lot of readers are asking me to write more stories for girls. Jocelyn is a story I would love to do, but there are so many "boy" stories still to be done....so many.

YPB: You've been writing for young adults for a long time. In your opinion, how has the genre changed in the last 10 years and how has it stayed the same?

WDM: The genre has, in my mind, improved tremendously. Young adult fiction gives serious writers the opportunity to flex their literary muscles without the narrow constraints and short shelf life of adult fiction. The economics of the artistic life, however, work against minority artists, and the economics of the publishing industry works against males in general, so there is a clear under representation of Latino, African-American, Islamic, Asian and Gay males.

YPB: Mr. Myers, I am a huge fan of your writing and want to thank you so much for agreeing to answer these questions for Ypulse Books. I really enjoyed Game. I'm not very sports savvy and the fact that I was so immersed in the actual "game talk" and Drew's playing in particular, is a true sign of Game's ability to move readers. Thank you.

Posted by alli