''We Beat the Street: How a Friendship Pact Led to Success'' is an American

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...

aimed at

young adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

s written by The Three Doctors and

Sharon M. Draper Sharon Mills Draper (born August 21, 1948) is an American children's writer, professional educator, and the 1997 National Teacher of the Year. She is a five-time winner of the Coretta Scott King Award for books about the young and adolescent Afric ...

on April 21, 2005. The novel shares the experiences of Dr. Sampson Davis, Rameck Hunt, and George Jenkins as well as other professional authors. ''We Beat the Street'' is the second novel that The Three Doctors were involved in writing, following the 2002 book '' The Pact'' and preceding the 2007 book ''

The Bond ''The Bond'' is a propaganda film created by Charlie Chaplin at his own expense for the Liberty Loan Committee for theatrical release to help sell U.S. Liberty Bonds during World War I. Made in 1918 with Edna Purviance, Albert Austin and Sydn ...

''.

Reception

''We Beat the Street'' was a ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' children's bestseller for the week ending June 25, 2005. The same year, the Association of Indiana School Library Educators selected the book as a "Read-Aloud Too-Good-to-Miss". In 2006, the book was chosen as a "Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People" by the

National Council for the Social Studies The National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) is a U.S.-based association devoted to supporting social studies education. It is affiliated with various regional or state level social studies associations, including: the Middle States Council ...

and Children's Book Council. The book review committee stated that the book contained a "true and inspiring" autobiographical account. Vicki Sherbert from ''

The ALAN Review ALAN, The Assembly on Literature for Adolescents is a teachers organization in the United States, an independent assembly of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Founded in November 1973, ALAN is made up of teachers, authors, libraria ...

'' felt that the authors "spoke honestly of their discouragement, failures, and successes" and "offer encouragement to kids who find themselves in hopeless situations." ''

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 ...

''s Francisca Goldsmith thought that the writing was "simple and accessible", adding that "there is plenty of action for reluctant readers." Gillian Engberg wrote in ''

Booklist ''Booklist'' is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. ''Booklist''s primary audience consists of libraries, educators, and booksellers. The magazine is av ...

'' that the book contained inspirational stories and "personal, intimate voices that frankly discuss big mistakes and complicated emotions".

References

2006 non-fiction books African-American autobiographies Dutton Children's Books books Novels by Sharon Draper American autobiographical novels Collaborative autobiographies {{US-bio-book-stub