Teen All Iowa Reads Program Resources
The 2025 All Iowa Reads selection for teens is Rez Ball by Byron Graves.
About the Book
These days, Tre Brun is happiest when he is playing basketball on the Red Lake Reservation high school team—even though he can’t help but be constantly gut-punched with memories of his big brother, Jaxon, who died in an accident.
When Jaxon's former teammates on the varsity team offer to take Tre under their wing, he sees this as his shot to represent his Ojibwe rez all the way to their first state championship. This is the first step toward his dream of playing in the NBA, no matter how much the odds are stacked against him.
But stepping into his brother’s shoes as a star player means that Tre can’t mess up. Not on the court, not at school, and not with his new friend, gamer Khiana, who he is definitely not falling in love with.
After decades of rez teams almost making it, Tre needs to take his team to state. Because if he can live up to Jaxon's dreams, their story isn’t over yet.
Book Discussion Questions
- Tre struggled with grief and balancing his school, basketball, and social life. What were positive or negative ways he handled this? Would you have done anything different?
- How is Jaxon honored throughout the story? What can you infer about his family and Ojibwe community?
- How does Coach motivate Tre? Do you think Tre will represent his family and community in the way Coach hopes he will?
- Tre and his community members experienced unfair treatment for being Native. Have you ever experienced something similar or known of others who did?
- Would you be friends with Tre? Why or why not? Which character(s) fits into your friend group? Why?
- How does the author make you feel when you visualize the fast-paced games? What emotions do you feel as the team approaches play-offs? Who are you rooting for?
- Why do you think basketball was so important to those who lived in Red Lake Indian Reservation and to other Native peoples in the book?
- If you could create a playlist for this book, what songs would you include?
- Would you recommend this book to your friends? Why or why not?
About Author Byron Graves
Byron Graves is Ojibwe and Lakota. He was born and raised on the Red Lake Indian Reservation, where he played high school basketball. When he isn’t writing, he can be found playing retro video games, skateboarding, or cleaning up after his cats.
Rez Ball, his debut novel, won the William C. Morris Young Adult debut award, the American Indian Youth Literature Award for Best Young Adult Novel, the 34th annual Reading the West Best Young Adult Award. Rez Ball was a 2024 Boston Globe Horn Book Fiction Honors Book, and a winner of the Colorado Book Awards for Best Young Adult Novel.
Byron has also had his work featured in the English Journal. Other stories of his can be found in the anthology, All Signs Point to Yes. His highly anticipated second novel is set to be released by Heartdrum, an imprint of Harper Collins in 2025.
Other Readalikes For Further Reading:
- Canyon Dreams: A Basketball Season on the Navajo Nation by Michael Powell
- The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
- Saints of the Household by Ari Tison
- The Crossover by Kwame Alexander
Find Copies of Rez Ball to Borrow
Find out which Iowa libraries have copies of the book to borrow, or find out how to request sets for discussion groups.
Find in Iowa Libraries:
- Locate Iowa libraries that have copies to lend.
Find on Bridges: Iowa's eLibrary:
Multiple Copies for Discussion Groups:
- For libraries: Each of the six District Offices for the State Library offers a book discussion set for libraries to borrow. Contact your local district office to request a set.