We Beat the Street by Sampson Davis

We Beat the Street

How a Friendship Pact Led to Success

Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, Rameck Hunt

Penguin Young Readers Group · Print & ebook · April 20, 2006

Uplifting and inspiring, this true story about how three friends came together and encouraged one another to achieve great success will speak to young readers everywhere. “All readers will be riveted by the profoundly inspirational stories and personal, intimate voices that discuss big mistakes and complicated emotions, including ‘survivor guilt’ for choosing a different path from friends and family.” —Booklist Growing up on the rough streets of Newark, New Jersey, Rameck, George,and Sampson could easily have followed their childhood friends into drug dealing, gangs, and prison.

Buy on Amazon

We earn from qualifying purchases.

Who it’s for
Serious, compact, and straight to the point: a friendship-driven success story with basketball-adjacent force.
Genres
Cultural Heritage Biographies for Kids, Friendship, African American Life (U.S.)
Published
Penguin Young Readers Group, April 20, 2006

Nearest books

Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved.

  1. CapriceCoe Booth50% match
  2. We Are FamilyLeBron James, Andrea Williams56% match
  3. After Tupac and D FosterJacqueline Woodson54% match
  4. Making Friends Is an ArtJulia Cook, K.D. Smith54% match
  5. Freak the Mighty (scholastic Gold)Rodman Philbrick53% match
  6. The FortGordon Korman53% match
  7. Vietnam Book Three: Free-fire ZoneChris Lynch53% match

For older readers: Game Change, Discovering Wes Moore, November Blues

Start with three books, and this one can be the first.

Members get a new edition every morning: a route out from their books to essays, research and talks, with the reason for each.

Start with this book

About this book

Uplifting and inspiring, this true story about how three friends came together and encouraged one another to achieve great success will speak to young readers everywhere.

Continue reading

“All readers will be riveted by the profoundly inspirational stories and personal, intimate voices that discuss big mistakes and complicated emotions, including ‘survivor guilt’ for choosing a different path from friends and family.” —Booklist Growing up on the rough streets of Newark, New Jersey, Rameck, George,and Sampson could easily have followed their childhood friends into drug dealing, gangs, and prison. But when a presentation at their school made the three boys aware of the opportunities available to them in the medical and dental professions, they made a pact among themselves that they would become doctors. It took a lot of determination—and a lot of support from one another—but despite all the hardships along the way, the three succeeded. Retold with the help of an award-winning author, this younger adaptation of the adult hit novel The Pact is a hard-hitting, powerful, and inspirational book that will speak to young readers everywhere.

Why It Lands

Serious, compact, and straight to the point: a friendship-driven success story with basketball-adjacent force.

Come here for

  • friendship-pact momentum
  • sports-and-self-making energy

Expect

  • African American YA voice
  • prestige-leaning, practical lift

Where it sits

African American Life (U.S.)80%
Friendship55%
Cultural Heritage Biographies for Kids47%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • African American Life (U.S.)
  • Friendship
  • Self-Esteem & Independence
Authors
Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, Rameck Hunt
Publisher
Penguin Young Readers Group
Published
April 20, 2006
Format
Print & ebook
Reading lane
African American Life (U.S.)