The Perilous Fight

Before you opened this, what picture of Colin Kaepernick did you carry around? Say it out loud, gently, no judgment in this room.

Where did you read most of this book, and did it end up being a couch book, a bus book, or a stay-up-late book for you?

The book is built around defining moments. Which one made you put the book down for a second and just sit with it?

So much of this story is about a kid figuring out where he fits, in a family, a team, a town. When did you first feel like the odd one in a group you loved?

Who were the people who showed up for him along the way, sometimes in small ways? Who has quietly shown up for you like that?

Sports here is partly about belonging and being seen. What was your version of that: a team, a choir, a kitchen, a church, a group chat?

There is a lot of tenderness in this book alongside the hard parts. What did the softness in it do to you, if you were expecting only toughness?

Looking back across the whole book, what does he seem to want a young reader to feel about themselves? Is there a young person in your life you would hand this to, and what would you say when you did?