A book that’ll make your child bounce with joy
Munga’s ‘Mind Pon Di Millions’
Caribbean Life, November 13-19, 2020 31
By Terri Schlichenmeyer
Your favorite player loves
getting buckets.
And that’s good – that’s
the goal of the game, after
all, right? It’s called basketball
because that’s what you’re supposed
to do: put the ball in the
basket, dunk it right in the
bucket. You might need help to
do that now, but practice, and
maybe you’ll be a pro someday.
Maybe you’ll be like the players
in “Swish!” by Suzanne Slade,
illustrated by Don Tate.
Ka-thumpa, ka-thumpa,
ka-thumpa. that’s what people
heard all day, if they lived near
Chicago’s South side. It was
“those boys” and their basketballs,
doing “nonstop layups,
Book cover of Swish! The Slam-Dunking, Alley-Ooping,
High-Flying Harlem Globetrotters” by Suzanne Slade, illustrated
by Don Tate.
all-net free throws, and skyhigh
jump shots.”
Sure, they were talented
boys. Everyone knew that but
they were Black and there were
not many options for them, so
those boys joined a traveling
team and they met Abe Saperstein.
That was when things
really started happening: it
was Saperstein’s idea to rename
the team the “Harlem
Globetrotters,” which made it
seem like they’d dribbled everywhere
around the world.
It was almost as if they
already had: the team played
ball nearly every night in
small towns all over the country,
but their style was different.
Because people didn’t like
seeing any Black players beat
the hometown White teams,
the boys had to learn new
tricks. They did a “One-finger
ball spinning.” They did their
“Rapid-fire mini dribbling.”
People began to laugh, and
they began to enjoy the show
as the “Trotters“ racked up
wins.
But it wasn’t all fun: there
were lots of places where the
Globetrotters weren’t welcome.
They couldn’t get a
drink of water just anywhere.
Some hotels turned them
away. Sometimes, they weren’t
allowed in restaurants.
And still, they played
because they were athletes!
Even when most teams in
the NBA wouldn’t hire Black
players, the Harlem Globetrotters
were real winners on
the court. They proved it by
beating the Minnesota Lakers!
They could beat anybody!
And then one day, “something
incredible happened”….
Everything spherical in
your house can be dunked.
Your 5-to-9-year-old has proven
that, so what next? Well,
“Swish!” will give them baskets
of joy.
With the kind of quickpaced,
wild fun that you get at
a Harlem Globetrotters game,
author Suzanne Slade brings
that fast action to the page
with a story of racism, perseverance,
and resilience. While
there’s a main focus on just
one generation here – roughly
the Depression years through
the early 1950s – Slade proceeds
to show the overall evolution
of the team by including
a timeline and additional
material. She also briefly
touches upon individual players,
but not more recent ones,
which may disappoint grownups;
kids whose hands are
practically glued to a round,
dimpled ball won’t notice that
omission at all.
This narrative would be the
lesser without artwork by Don
Tate. Kids will love his movement
on the pages; adults
will have difficulty not hearing
“Sweet Georgia Brown”
in their heads. That makes
“Swish!” fun, it’s fast, and if
there’s a future NBA or WNBA
fan in your house, your child
will love it by the buckets
“Swish! The Slam-
Dunking, Alley-Ooping,
High-Flying Harlem
Globetrotters” by Suzanne
Slade, illustrated by Don
Tate
c.2020
Little Brown Books for
Young Readers
$17.99 / higher in Canada,
40 pages
Suzanne Slade author of “Swish! The Slam-Dunking, Alley-Ooping, High-Flying Harlem
Globetrotters.”
By Nelson A. King
Jamaican recording artist
Munga Honorable has joined
forces with Romeich Entertainment
top lieutenant, Teejay,
on the single, “Mind Pon Di
Millions,” slated for release on
Nov. 27.
The single, which is on Luigi
Society’s “Sikario Riddim,” will
see both acts bringing their artistry
in a unique way, as Munga
gets ready for his upcoming
album, “Shine Your Light,” to
be released in December.
“This track was inspired by
the need to encourage fans
and new listeners to think big,”
Munga Honorable said. “Thus,
the chorus and title ‘Mind Pon
Di Millions’ was made.
“That line was from a conversation
about how ghetto
people think,” he added. “Few
ghetto people think themselves
possible to spend and deal with
millions and be a millionaire.
So, it’s intended to encourage
fans.”
Munga said his decision to
work with Teejay was strategic,
as they have been colleagues
in the industry for years, even
prior to Teejay’s musical success.
The single, which motivates
listeners to engage in wealth
creation, “speaks to breaking
unproductive habits, so one
can achieve this goal and break
their family out of poverty,”
Munga said.
This is a story Teejay also
knows all too well, “moving
from rags to riches as he often
tells.”
“Munga Honorable was
always one of the youths dem
from long time, like 2013/2014
forward, in my village in a
Glendevon, Mobay (Montego
Bay) and always a tell
me, ‘youth, you a go buss,’”
Teejay said. “As matter of fact,
Munga was the first deejay to
tell me, ‘Teejay, me wah you
start dress like artiste.’”
He also said that Munger
further urged him to always
distinguish himself from his
peers, “so individuals can
identify the artiste among the
group.”
Jamaican entertainment
publicist Shuzzr said that
Munga Honorable’s upcoming
album, “Shine Your Light,” will
comprise 13 tracks, including
the feature with Teejay.
“Humbled by life’s lessons
and optimistic about the
future, Munga is ready to shine
his light once more upon the
world,” Shuzzr said.