''The Moves Make The Man'' is a sports novel written by author

Bruce Brooks Bruce Brooks (born September 23, 1950) is an American writer of young adult and children's literature. Background Brooks, born in Richmond, Virginia, lived most of his young life in North Carolina as a result of parental divorce. Brooks credit ...

that deals with many issues in society including

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

abuse Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...

, and family deaths. It was chosen best book of 1984 by

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

(SLJ),

ALA Notable Children's Book American Library Association Notable lists are announced each year in January by various divisions within the American Library Association (ALA). There are six lists, part of the larger ALA awards structure. * ''ALA Notable Books for Adults'' (est ...

, notable book of the year

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, and won the

Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- most p ...

and a

Newbery Honor Newbery is a surname. People *Chantelle Newbery (born 1977), Australian Olympic diver *David Newbery (born 1943), British economist *Eduardo Newbery (1878–1908), Argentine odontologist and aerostat pilot *Francis Newbery (disambiguation), seve ...

in 1985.

Setting

The book is set in North Carolina around the time of the

Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, Racial discrimination ...

, in 1961. It is written in first person and narrated by an

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

child named Jerome Foxworthy, who goes by the nickname of Jayfox. He is the only African-American in his school and going through problems being forced to integrate. He covers the stories leading up to the relationship between him and a young white boy named Braxton Rivers III, otherwise known as Bix: about when he first saw him playing baseball, Bix's freaking out in Home Ec class, and teaching him basketball on a court in the woods at night. Braxton is a child who never says anything that is not a truth, which brings him problems others cannot understand, and eventually he runs away. The book covers problems happening in both his and Jerome's families. This book was published by

Harper & Row Harper is an American publishing house, the flagship imprint of global publisher HarperCollins based in New York City. History J. & J. Harper (1817–1833) James Harper and his brother John, printers by training, started their book publishin ...

Characters

Jerome. Jerome the narrator and main character is a teenage African American male and loves to play basketball. He is being raised by a single mother. He meets Bix (Braxton Rivers) in a Home Economics class he has to take after it is discovered his mom has been injured and Jerome needs to learn to take care of his older siblings. Bix whose real name is Braxton Rivers, is a friend of Jerome. Bix used to tell the truth but he stops after he finds out how the truth hurt his mother and those around him. Bix loved baseball, but Jerome helped him learn how to play basketball and not 'bounceball'. One day Bix had played a game of one-on-one against his stepfather to earn the right to see his mother in the mental hospital. 1984 American novels American sports novels American young adult novels Newbery Honor-winning works Novels set in North Carolina Fiction set in 1961 1984 children's books Children's books set in North Carolina Children's books set in the 1960s Children's books about basketball Children's books about race and ethnicity {{1980s-ya-novel-stub