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Summary: I like the fact that we see what Alfred is thinking.
Review: This book is fantastic. I don't mean to sound rascist but it is amazing how a white middle aged guy can understand the feelings of a young black male growing up under trying circumstances. Kudos to Robert Lipsyte. I recommend this book whole heartedly to all. Young, Old black white.... Black males who are coming of age can definately relate to this book. Also reccomended. Where do I go from here ? by Valerie Wesley
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Summary: This book is off the hook.
Review: This book is about Alfred Brooks of Harlem N.Y. Hedrops out of highschool to work at a grocery store. Most people his age in his neighborhood are doing drugs and robbing stores, including his best friend James. Some of them even beat him up. Alfred decides to stop at Donatelli`s GYM and see if he could become a boxer. Alfred trains hard. He almost quits but keeps going. He becomes a boxer and becomes aware of what he wants to do with his life. He get`s a raise at his job and tries to help with his friends drug adiction. I liked this book because it`s better than I thought it would be. It has a great ending and is interesting all through the book.
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Summary: A gripping story about a boy who learns to be a contender
Review: This book shows the more serious side of life, and dramatically portrays how a young man overcomes many hardships--really how he trains his mind to think like a "real man" would. The story is written with a style that reveals how the young man thinks, as well as what his personality is like. It really touched my heart and left a deep impression there.
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Summary: This book is pretty good if you have time to read
Review: If you want to read the best book in my opinion, I think that you should get your hands on The Contendor by Robert Lipstye. It's about a boy named Alfred who lives in Harlem, going through all the difficult things in life. One day he goes up to Donatellis' gym and says that he wants to be a boxer. So, he goes through all the vigouros training and then starts to fight. This is a good book if you think that some things are impossible. A young boy who wants to be somebody. You just can't get your hands off of this book. It's full of never ending excitment.So, if you want to get a good book I suggest The Contedor by Robert Lipstye.
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Summary: I enjoyed this book. It had good pionts, easy to understand.
Review: I recently just finished a book written in the sixty's by an author named Robert Lipsyte. This book is called "THE CONTENDER". This book is about a boy, named Alfred. He is a young boy wanting to be a professional boxer. He has to work very hard to even think on going out to fight. Alfred is willing to do this. This means every morning run through the park until you can't run anymore, no eating any fatty foods, and much more. You pretty much have to dedicate your time to boxing. I am sure this was very hard for Alfred. Almost every morning Alfred got up early and ran, except for one day. Alfred's friends wanted him to come to a club with them. Of course, he went. At first Alfred said no to every drink or cigarette that came around to him, but after a while he just gave up. By the end of the night he was so drunk it was not even funny. After that night Alfred was back into shape and was running again with no problem. Through reading the book, I kind of was not sure if I was going to like it, especially in the beginning. By the time I was half way done with book, I was starting to like it more and more. Anybody who is interested in boxing or does box, I recommend you read this book. I enjoyed it a lot. Even though it is a fiction, it seems so real. If you read the book, you will know what I am saying.
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Summary: This book was a very interesting action adventure story.
Review: The author of the book was Robert Lipsyte. His writing was sometimes hard to understand because of the slang words. The other dialogue was very easy to understand.The Contender was about Alfred and his best friend james. James was built small and hung out with other people in their clubroom. Alfred lived with his aunt Pearlbecause his mother died. He wanted to become a boxer so he went up to the gym to see Mr. donatelli. It was very exciting in many parts when Alfred was boxing and knocked a guy out when there was only 10 seconds left in the match. I thought the contender was very interesting and suspenseful during the boxing matches. I would suggest reading this book especially if you enjoy action packed books.
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Summary: I thought it was a good book.
Review: This book was about a boy growing up in the ghetto who dropped out of school and works at a grocery store. He ran into problems with other kids and had to ran alot. One night he decided he wanted to be someone so he went to the Donetlis Boxing Club HE started to trian to be a boxer. I think this book was good and very exiting and it had a lot of fighting.
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Summary: A Leson About Life
Review: This book not only teaches us about the problems that teens face in the world today. It also teaches us ways to deal with those problems such as peer pressure, drugs, stealing, and many other problems. It also teaches you to set goals in life because if you don't set goals in life you'll never accomplish anything.
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Summary: Truely Stories
Review: I read this book with my ESL teacher, and we didn't finish it yet. But I thought it is good. This book tells us all true things around us. So we can learn lots of things from it such as how did Alfred stand up and to be a champion.
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Summary: I thought the book was a great book to start the school year
Review: I liked the book. The only problem is it was too short for my liking.
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