STAT!

"A lot of young boys are starting to shy away from reading as if it's not cool, so I wanted to express ... how important reading really is to them. I remember when I was their age, going to the bookstore I went to, the first book that had any type of athlete on the book — whether it was Jackie Robinson or whether it was Bill Russell or what have you — whatever book I saw that had an athlete on it, you know, I bought that book and I read that book, and then that started to spark my mind to want to read more, so I want that same effect to continue on." This is a quote from my new favorite NBA player, Amar'e Stoudemire. I will admit that I am not a basketball fann and have never had a "favorite", but there is a first for everything. It would have been even better if he had mentioned going to his library, but I am getting greedy.  Listen to the full interview at the NPR web site.   Mr. Stoudemire has written 3 books for middle school kids, the STAT series (standing tall and talented)  that are on order at the library. Look for them soon!