Year of the Dunk: A Modest Defiance of Gravity

Journalist Price gleefully narrates his quest to dunk a basketball as a not-so-young adult. Price is over 6’2” with “orangutan arms,” but he’s approaching his mid-30s and possesses a spotty athletic pedigree (though he served as captain on his college Frisbee team) to go with his love handles. Embarking on a strict diet and an exercise plan featuring tutelage from an Olympic gold medalist, Price, a testicular cancer survivor, gives himself a year to accomplish this specific athletic endeavor. Price uses this venture to plumb a number of related subjects, including the physics of jumping and the cultural significance of the dunk. In addition, the author details his own emotional state. “Two inches ain’t much,” Price observes about his improvement in vertical leap, “but it showed that at least I—and, by extension, just about anyone past his or her prime—had the capability of improvement.” The book is a springy mix of science writing, memoir, and history that is by turns informative, entertaining, and endearing. (May)