Catch a Star: Shining through Adversity to Become a Champion

by Tamika Catchings, Ken Petersen, Tony Dungy (Foreword)

When all she wanted was to fit in, Tamika Catchings stood out and felt left out, never knowing one day she'd stand out--as a basketball superstar and an inspiration. She faced being set apart by her hearing loss, separated from family, living up to high expectations, and the pain and discouragement of debilitating physical injury. Yet she reached for the stars with hard work, perseverance, and her faith in God. Through the silence, she found the way to shine.

Catch a Star tells Tamika's story of overcoming: of leading the Indiana Fever to its first championship, being named one of the WNBA's top fifteen players in history, earning three Olympic gold medals, and founding the Catch the Stars Foundation to help young people achieve their dreams. Her story will inspire readers to face their doubts and fears, encouraging them to reach for their own stars, no matter what challenges come their way.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports, Memoir, Biography, Basketball

257 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 1, 2016

Reviews

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

As has been the case with the last two books I read, I knew very little about Tamika Catchings going into this book. I knew that she played at Tennessee under Pat Summitt, for the Indiana Fever in the WNBA, and won 3 gold medals with USA (2004, 2008, 2012)

This good was full of information. I learned a lot about Catchings' life that is not always under the spotlight. Early in her life, Catchings struggled with bullying. She had a hearing condition and wore large hearing aids early in life. This, combined with glasses and later braces, was like a gold mine for bullies. She overcame this to become one of the greatest women's basketball players in history.

[Mady Posey · Rating 4 out of 5]

easy read and lots of good info! loved learning how tamika overcame so much bullying to become one of the best players the women’s game has ever seen. also — this book shows that the women’s game has always had great players and coaches and competitive games. most people are just too ignorant to realize that!

[Susie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always been a fan of Tamika Catchings and Pat Summitt. I sought out this book to see if it would be suitable for an after-school group, and I guess it would depend upon the girls. Many of them are extremely interested in basketball, so I do not think they would be hesitant to read all of it. At times I felt the book could benefit from tighter editing. I knew of most of the players (in fact, many women from Indiana have played for Tennessee), plus I'm from Indianapolis. Tamika has been a wonderful role model for males and females, and continues to do that in her post-basketball life.

I found it easy to forget that she has accomplished much of this despite her hearing loss. I think I would have liked to have learned more about the implications of it, although she does not let it define her. I think I will encourage the teacher who works with the after-school group to pursue a grant to purchase the book for her group. They could read it a chapter or so at a time, and maybe they could connect with Tamika at some point; I'm sure many of them have attended her camps or clinics.

Some of the things I enjoyed the most: her inside stories of practice and relationships. Great story about upperclassmen frightening the freshmen into doing their own, extreme conditioning. I really thought about her statement that she did not like to be referred to as "talented," because she worked very hard and did not coast because of her "talent". "A team is just a collection of statistics before it plays." I had forgotten that it was my favorite team, Purdue, that broke the long Tennessee win streak, that she missed her first potential WNBA season with an ACL tear, and that the WNBA is not even 20 years old yet. From reading Pat Summitt's book, I got more of a sense that she and Geno did not really get along, but Tamika hints that the rivalry was great for attention.

Tamika is now married, owns her own tea shop (a place she had frequented before), and still very involved in the community. Indianapolis is very fortunate to have her as a resident. She is indeed working for the Pacers' organization, undoubtedly good experience toward her goal of one day being a general manager.

[Julia Gregg · Rating 5 out of 5]

New appreciation for Tamika Catchings after reading. Fav quotes so they have a spot.

There’s playing basketball and there’s the game of basketball. I began to love the game of basketball even more during this time. Some people say they “love” a particular sport, but really they’re just saying they have fun playing it. And most people can say that. No, you really fall in love with a game when you begin to appreciate what it does for you inside.

I think sometimes we settle for less than we should. We’re scared of challenges, afraid we might fail. Sometimes we settle in at a level beneath the talents God has given us. But it’s comfortable for us, and we know at that level we might just avoid the pain of failure. But then how will we know what we could have been?

In life we might strive to get better at something - at work, or in competition, or in marriage - and we make changes in ourselves. But we often don’t see the results of those changes immediately. It requires us to be patient. To follow through. To be consistent.

But the point is that you can’t force relationships. You can’t manufacture a friendship. A relationship needs to grow naturally, and develop by choice of the two people involved.

Life is all about new goals. When you reach one, you enjoy the success, but you continue to set out to do new things. Never get content with just doing one thing, or reaching just one goal. Your success propels you to the next goal - short of long term.

[Elizabeth Critton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tamika tells her story of heartache, struggles and her faith in GOD in this book. She tells her story from childhood, high school, college, her career and her foundation. She has hearing issues from her childhood and shares how this was GOD's blessing for her life. Not being able to hear made her compensate with body language and lip reading, this was helpful for her love of playing basketball. She lives for basketball, her love for GOD and her energy to help others with her foundation. Playing basketball is the one thing I know I will always love to do. When I grow up I want to do something with basketball or just sports in general. People say to do the things you love in life and what would be better than doing you love every day? Basketball is my passion and always will be.I feel that that the book I am reading is very inspirational.I have learned many things from this book and it has changed really changed my perspective about life and also basketball.I love this book and I feel that anyone that will read this will learn something.I recommend this book to anyone, but especially to the young women that play any level of basketball.I love basketball and everything about it.This book has taught me to not give up on anything that I put my mind to.Also to not let any personal issues stop me from getting what i've worked for.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed this book, but I am a basketball lover. I knew very little about Catchings background, so her childhood, high school, and college stories were all exciting and new to me. She was clearly an amazing basketball player who won championships at all levels of basketball, and I found her story of drive and tenacity to stick with it very inspiring.

The book isn't super well-written, and would probably drag for others who aren't interested in so many basketball game details. But I enjoyed listening to her whole story (and I sped up the reading so the details went by quickly). I could relate to several things - moving in high school, tearing her acl, and turning to God throughout her life.

[Lauren J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book said it was going to talk about how she dealt with being hard-of-hearing. There was very little of that. It was a general overview of her life and basketball. There was some depth to it, but mostly a general story with some interesting twists. She is definitely an incredible athlete and basketball player. Her story about Pat Summit was terrific.

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tamika shows through her book a great love and passion for basketball, hard work and most importantly, as she mentions many times, God. A very well written book that draws you in to her different struggles and triumphs. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves basketball.

[Cassandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Her story is interesting and the book is worth it since it is a quick read. But it's disjointed, skims over the top of her story and is marred by some randomness and a blur of recapping her Fever career at the end.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pre-read this for my 4th grader. I had planned to just skim it but it ended up being so interesting that I read the entire thing in full :) It is in the adult section at our library but it is completely appropriate for kids. My son loved it!!

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book! Very inspiring easy to read.

[Madlyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring

[Kyla Daniels · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such an inspiring story about a true role model for young people.

[Tara Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting to learn about this leader.

[Pam Carr · Rating 2 out of 5]

Complete waste of time. Didn’t learn anything that I didn’t know from reading two interviews.

[Rob Breen · Rating 4 out of 5]

She focused a lot on her college career at the University of Tennessee playing under Pat Summitt. She also talked about her early years with The Fever and the team’s first and only championship!

[Claire]

I hated to rate this low because I love Tamika Catchings. However this book was not well written. It went beyond the usual issues of books written by non authors. The second half especially was just a collection of random thoughts with no organization or flow.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ll be the first to admit that Catch a Star: Shining through Adversity to Become a Champion isn’t my typical read. It’s the story of Tamika Catchings, who played in the WNBA (that’s professional women’s basketball, for those of you — like me — who aren’t real athletic). One of my most memorable moments in the dreaded PE class involved basketball. Our very stern middle school PE teacher threw a few basketballs onto the court, then instructed our class of 7th grade girls that each of us had to make 3 baskets before sitting down. One by one, my classmates accomplished this (or pretended they had). Eventually, it was just awkward, clumsy me out there, throwing up that ball over and over again. When it became clear that it would most likely take the entire class time before I made those elusive three baskets, the teacher finally told me, “Just sit down.” Oh, the humiliation …

I chose to review the book largely because I thought my dad would enjoy it. He is a huge sports fan, and in fact he has taken me to an Indiana Fever game. That’s Indianapolis’ women’s pro basketball team. I remember him pointing out one of the team stars, Tamika Catchings. So when I saw that she had written a book, I had that connection. I thought I might enjoy the book myself, before passing it along to my dad.

Tamika had an interesting life. She had moderate hearing loss as a child, but didn’t usually wear the ugly big hearing aids she had. In fact, once she threw them away (her mom searched for them to no avail). She was great at basketball, and that became her escape. It was interesting to read about the time in high school when colleges were hoping to recruit her. She mentioned fixing her room nice so that the coach would be impressed, and about going to the mall with a recruiter. It amazed me. Can you imagine getting that kind of treatment? I was valedictorian at my high school, and I can tell you nobody was recruiting me. I know, I know — we need sports to pay for colleges. Still …

Tamika had amazing success with basketball. Her college team at the University of Tennessee went on to be national champions her freshman year.

I related to Tamika and I liked her personality. She wrote: “I think sometimes people see me as a driven, no-nonsense person, and maybe they miss the deeper things inside me. I don’t know, but maybe because of my hearing loss, through the years the world outside has been more distant for me than for other people, and maybe I’ve developed more of a private, inner life instead. I think deeply, feel deeply, but those things don’t often come out visibly to other people.”

The faith aspect of the book was pretty understated. As Tamika said, “I have never been one to be extremely vocal about much of anything, and besides, I knew how some Christians come across to others, and I didn’t want to be too pushy like that.” Honestly, you’ll want to read this book much more for its sports aspects than its Christian angle, because there isn’t a whole lot.

Understandably, the book was very basketball-themed. There was lots of talk about specific plays and specific games. While this wasn’t that compelling to me, I can see this being great for those who love basketball. The writing style was very simple and basic, so I’d especially recommend this book to the reluctant teen reader who enjoys sports.

[Joanne Viola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Life is full of difficulties and adversities, all of which play critical roles in our lives. Some people allow their hardships to embitter or bring them down. Others use those very adversities to cause them to become stronger and rise above.
I recently had the pleasure of reading Catch A Star by Tamika Catchings, a three time Gold Medalist and WNBA All-Star. To be honest, it wasn't her accolades which brought admiration as much as her character and ability to overcome in spite of all she faced.

As a young girl growing up, she struggled with hearing loss having to wear hearing aids, which brought much teasing from other kids. Embarrassment and bullying were a regular part of her school days to the point she often wished she did not have to attend. Then there was the anguish of her parents' divorce which brought separation not only from a parent but divided her and her siblings.

Tamika shares with an honesty which reveals her struggles while still honoring and respecting everyone. Her strength and character as a young woman is a shining testament to who she as a person.

Tamika includes quotes from basketball coaches and players which enrich the experience of reading the book. One comes to quickly recognize the names and realize, life for Tamika was lived among those who played the best and also, expected the best from her.

Tamika tells of her experiences both on and off the court which is sure to inspire basketball fans or not. Throughout the book, she shares of important lessons learned along the way:

"We are each gifted in a special way. God made us with some aspect of his own image, and we are, in our own unique way, God's work of art."
"God was there, answering my prayers. I realized that, in fact, it wasn't basketball that got me through.."
"I think God dares us to step our on our own in life. He's saying, "Trust me, I've got you." As you do so, yes, there can be doubt (sure was for me), but you find out God has given you what you need to succeed. Not just in basketball but also in life."
"The toughest thing for a player is to miss shots ... practice the discipline of doing it the right way, using the right form, following the sequence of shooting that ultimately works best."
"God's way of living life is what best for us.But sometimes we have to go through his discipline to get there. We have to relearn how tolive, get away from bad habits, and practice the life he has for us."
"This has been a journey like no other."

This is an enjoyable memoir sure to motivate any reader to reach for their own dream, no matter the obstacles.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an inspiring story of how Catchings rose above challenges to become one of the top WNBA players of all time.

She shares how she suffered from hearing loss as a young person. She wore hearing aids and was tormented and teased by classmates until she finally tossed them in a vacant lot. Her parents divorced and that was a challenge she had to overcome too.

I was impressed with her desire to play basketball even at a young age. She loved the game so much as a teen her goal was to play in the NBA as there was no women's league then. Her father had played professional basketball and he taught his daughters how to play the game. Catchings says her hearing loss forced her to pay attention to subtle body movements, a plus for playing basketball.

She takes us through her high school experience and a state championship. Then her time at Tennessee with coach Pat Summitt and an NCAA national championship. She had an ACL injury her senior year and wondered about the WNBA draft. But she was picked third by Indiana Fever, a team in their second year. Catchings won WNBA Rookie of the Year in 2002. She was on three Olympic teams and brought home three gold medals. She was essential to Indiana Fever's first ever WNBA championship in 2012. She was MVP of the league, of the championship series, and Defensive Player of the Year.

But her skill on the court is only half the story. More important is who Catchings is. She came to a point where she realized basketball was the most important thing in her life. She let God into her life, becoming born again, and made God in control of her life. She knows she has been gifted by God and gives back to her community, especially through her Catch the Stars Foundation she established in 2004, helping young people reach their dreams.

This is an encouraging book. Catchings is a great role model for young athletes. She has an inspiring character and exercises strength and persistence. I recommend it to basketball fans and young people ready to be inspired to be the best they can be.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher for the purpose of an independent and honest review.

[Lori Wasson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being an Indiana Hoosier, I am familiar with Tamika Catchings and how talented of a basketball player she is with the Indiana Fever. This book helped me get to know Tamika a little better, telling more about her background, her faith in God, struggles in life, and her basketball career.

I really liked getting to know the person behind the basketball player. Seeing how she was bullied because of her hearing aids, her struggles in her relationship with her dad who expected a lot out of her as a basketball player, and the split of her family showed that yes, she’s a great basketball player, but she shares a lot of the same struggles as many of us do. The book also did a pretty good job showing how her faith in God helped her persevere through the various obstacles in her life.

Tamika also showed that with God and a lot of hard work, if God wills it, we can achieve it. She spent so much time in her life through hard work and determination to become the basketball player that she is.

There were a few quirks in the writing. One thing was that a chapter would be titled on a subject and would address the subject briefly, but then would go back to talking about basketball. I know that this book is about basketball, but sometimes the chapters were a little heavy on the basketball that it overshadowed the topic of the chapters. I noticed this particularly on the chapters about “God” and “Relationships”.

All in all, it was a very good, inspirational book. If you are into basketball, you will enjoy this book.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I received this book for free from the Revell Book Tour program in exchange for a review.

[Mariejkt · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Catch A Star" by Tamika Catchings is the life story of Tamika a professional basketball player who was born partial deaf that overcame that to become a top of her field basketball player. Her story is very interesting all the hard work she did to get to where her career. Her story of working so hard and to overcome the teasing/bullying from her youth to the basketball giant she became. This book was so inspiring to me. To have her even a little of her ambition the early 90's to grow up to be a professional basketball player was powerful. See when I was on a basketball team in junior high none of the girls I knew even thought about being a professional in basketball so to know she did was amazing. Her father played in the NBA but she never used to that rest on her own talent and hard work is what brought her to where she is today. She kept focused even when God put speed bumps in her life. I highly recommend this book for a very encouraging and uplifting book to read.

I was given this book from Revell a division of Baker Publishing Group for my honest review and was not required to give a positive review.

[Jean Sommers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had not heard of Tamika Catchings even though I live in Indianapolis. I am not a sports fan. It is inspirational what this young woman has done and overcame. She shows that if you want something bad enough and are willing to work hard for it, it is possible. As she said in the book, "God took my mess and made it into a miracle." She had to overcome obstacles such as a hearing problem, low self-esteem, bullying and struggling to find her place. In the book she talks about relationships in her life. She states that family don't choose you, you are born into it. Your brothers and sisters can invite you into their lives or not. They can live in ways that make you important to them or not. They can choose you or not. She had the support of her family which helped her and of course, the love of God. She suffered injuries and still pushed on.
This is a very powerful book from a powerful woman. Pick up a copy today and travel along with Tamika as she grows into the woman she is today.

[Nicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

One for Sports Fans


 
I do enjoy listening to memoirs and biographies, so although I'm not a sports fan and know absolutely nothing about basketball, I thought I'd give this a go for review purposes. The author Tamika Catchings comes across as a very genuine person who works really hard at whatever she does, whether on the court or off. I liked the way she down played talent for hard work that got her where she was in the game. The narrator does a good job making it easy to listen to and understand.I would definitely recommend this to sports lovers and particularly basketball fans.Thanks to christianaudio.com Reviewer's Program for the free copy of this audio.



 

[Jim Serger · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a excellent book for anyone willing to see there are set backs in life--but with grit and determination, anything can be concurred. Super read for parents; about how you love a child--about how you lead, cheer, referee and hug your children and watch them climb upward with great character and leadership qualities others will inspire to be and emulate. Dreams do come true, hard-work creates that pinnacle. If you love BB read this, if you enjoy leadership read this....moreover, if you want to achieve success and see how to achieve that--read this.

[Joanna Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! Her story is so encouraging with all the adversity and challenges she faced, and yet she persevered. Not only that, but she found a close relationship with God and a bigger purpose for her life than only sports (of which she had many). This book is well-written and easy to read, contains little gems of wisdom throughout, and inspires readers whatever their circumstances.

[Kristy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great local Indianapolis champion and philanthropist writing about growing up in a basketball-centered family and her amazing basketball career. I wish she had included some more about her personal life and meeting her husband. I have had the pleasure of seeing her play and hearing her and her sister speak at a small Women's Fund talk.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book about The life and basketball career of Tamika Catchings. She is not only a great player who has overcome adversity, but a young lady that gives back to her community. She is a great role model.

[Adron Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book which tells the story of how Tamika Catchings overcame various adversities in her life by her faith in Christ. This is a good book to give to teens who are struggling with not fitting in socially or who are interested in excelling in sports.

[Udofindme71 · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good reminder that God has plans for my life and if I let go and let God through patience, relinquishing of control, and obedience, it can be truly a life blessed to the fullest despite highs and lows, easy going and challenging seasons.