SLAM DUNK: Volume 2

In this series' first volume, readers met Sakuragi Hanamichi, a tall, athletic, self-centered dimwit who's jealous of the attention the Shohoku basketball players get from the girls. But after meeting the irresistible Haruko, an adorable, basketball-loving female classmate, red-haired Sakuragi develops a huge crush and decides he's going out for the team—even though he doesn't know the first thing about the game. Haruko asks her brother, Akagi, the feared and respected team captain, to give Sakuragi a chance to make the team—and he does after making an improbable slam dunk over Akagi during practice. That's where the fun and action in this thoroughly enjoyable manga begin. Sakuragi possess strong athletic ability, but he's much more interested in impressing Haruko than in learning how to play. Plus, he's insanely jealous of Rukawa, the cool, slick-playing star freshman guard that all the girls, including Haruko, swoon over. The hapless Sakuragi is constantly trying (and failing) to upstage Rukawa on the court, leading to one comical basketball mishap after another. In this volume, Sakuragi finally gets in an intrasquad game that's been dominated by Rukawa's thrilling play, only to learn the hard way that there's a lot more to basketball than being able to dunk. A hit in Japan, the book is credited with creating a national basketball craze. Takehiko's b&w drawings are comic and vivid—he captures basketball's dynamic action and vibrant physical postures—and his story is a delightful send-up of high school life that American readers will enjoy. (Aug.)