"The diary of one fan's relationship with an NBA season. . . . There's plenty of basketball, but there's also tons of race, class, sex, politics, and the personal life of a man obsessed with the game. He doesn't just slay sacred cows; he yanked out their guts and rolled around in them, all the while reflecting on the act." --Nathaniel Friedman, Chicago Sports Review -- (3/21/2007 12:00:00 AM)
"Black Planet does the unexpected. It takes risks and says things that we know but have not articulated. A wonderful book."--Richard Rodriguez, author of Brown: The Last Discovery of America-- (11/24/2008 12:00:00 AM)
"One of the best books ever written on the subject of sport in America, which is to say a book that is about a great deal more than sport."--A.O. Scott, Newsday
"A risky and brilliant book. . . . It is an emotional journey into Jock Culture's heart of darkness. Shields is willing to write himself naked about the hungers and envies that move across the grandstand like the wave."--Robert Lipsyte, New York Times
"Black Planet accomplishes a rare feat by tackling race head on."--Steven Hill, Chicago Tribune