Shaquem Griffin: Don't Tell Me What I Can't Do

October 1, 2020
Grades 4-6 Eight-year-old twins Shaquem and Shaquill Griffin vowed to play together in the NFL someday. And 15 years later, in 2018, they both took the field for the Seattle Seahawks. According to Harts, only 9 out of every 10,000 high-school football players will join the NFL. The goal was especially challenging for Shaquem, whose left hand had been amputated when he was four because of a congenital disorder. Besides practicing hard and finding his own ways to handle the football, he sometimes had to overcome his coaches' doubts as well. Griffin's story unfolds in a straightforward, informative way, enhanced by the many excellent color photos. It's an appealing, inspiring choice from the Disabilities Can't Stop Us! series (6 books), which also includes prominent figures in fields such as art, science, and government.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)