Tiki BarberReviews

very good - Ruthie

This is a true story of twin football brothers. After one of them gets injured, they stay together through it all. The twins later become NFL players.

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Tiki and Ronde were each other's best friends. Together from the start, these twins might not have been the strongest or the tallest, but they were fast and worked hard at what they loved. And they loved sports, especially football.
Then one day Tiki badly hurt his knee in a biking accident, and he was sure he'd never be able to play again. Their mother had always told them, "You are each other's best friends. Stick together, believe in yourselves, and you can do anything." They kept her words in their hearts and never gave up. Based on the childhood of National Football League superstars Ronde and Tiki Barber, this inspiring book about the values of family, hard work, and determination is the story of what it takes to be a champion.

Its good to see that players like Ronde and Tiki Barber did things when they were kids that the rest of us do and they practiced hard to get where they would end up. I watched a lot of Tiki and Ronde growing up, They were both amazing players, Tiki being a running back for the giants and Ronde being a corner for the Buccaneers. Even though in the story Ronde played offensive line. It just a shows that even professionals at one time were not the best at what they do and took a lot of practice to get there.

I've always had a lot of admiration for Tiki Barber. Most of those reading this review probably already know who Tiki Barber is, but he played for the New York Giants as a tailback from 1997 to 2006, ending his career with over 10,000 yards rushing and 5,000 yards receiving. Only two other running backs have accomplished that feat (Marshall Faulk and Marcus Allen). He retired last year at the age of 31 on the top of his game.

I'm not a New York Giants fan, but as football fan you have to appreciate the way he played on the field. He wasn't the biggest back but he was an electric one and the last five years of his career he was one of the top backs in the league. He is also clearly a very bright and articulate fellow, retiring to go into a broadcasting career that isn't just some ex-jock talking sports.

In this book Tiki takes the opportunity to talk about his life experiences. He grew up in a single parent household in Roanoke, Virginia with his twin brother Rhonde Barber, who is an outstanding cornerback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Growing up with a hard working mother raising two sons, and having an alter ego in an identical twin, clearly shaped his outlook on life and kept him grounded. He also talks very briefly about his career at the University of Virginia, a school he and his brother chose more for its location and academics than they did (obviously) for its football prowess.

The bulk of the book, however, is about Tiki's career with the New York Giants. There really isn't a lot of nitty-gritty X's and O's discussion in the book, or interesting anecdotes about crazy player antics, strategies, or the inside story of the New York Giants. This book is more about his perseverance going from what many considered to be an undersized back on special teams and third downs, to an every down back and one of the best to ever play the game.

The last part of the book focuses more on the last few years of his career with really a new regime - a new, disciplinarian head coach in Tom Coughlin, a new quarterback in Eli Manning, along with new offensive players, Plaxico Burress (WR) and Jeremy Shockey (TE).

Anyone who has closely followed football the past few years knows of what appears to be a little bit of turmoil and dissention on the Giants team, with prominent players complaining about the head coach and his disciplinarian ways. And of course the media, at least some in the media, were somewhat harsh on Tiki announcing his retirement during last season, saying it was selfish and a distraction for the team. And Tiki himself was part of the problem, saying after one playoff game the team was "out coached" and making other allusions to his dislike of the way the team was handled under Coughlin. Tiki rationalizes this a bit in the book. Certainly players can say what they want, but regardless of what Tiki says - that players aren't paying attention to this and it's not a distraction - I don't find that very believable. Anytime you have prominent players undermining the head coach he loses respect and it will get into the mindset of the team. And maybe Tiki is right. He says he retired, at least in part, because Coughlin made him lose his desire to play and he wanted to pursue other things in his life. But all that swirling attention around the coach certainly couldn't have helped the team mentally.

Overall I found this book interesting but nothing particularly inspiring or insightful. It is Tiki's story and that, in and of itself, is interesting enough for me. For those looking for a tell all, inside story of the Giants or pro football, this is not the book for you. For those looking for X's and O's and strategy, this is not the book for you either. For those looking for a snapshot into the thoughts and life of a great NFL player, this is your ticket.

That is my review of the book but given we are talking about Tiki let's talk about things going on outside this book. Recently there has been a flap about Tiki indicating that Eli Manning, the Giants quarterback, is not a good leader, in fact even making fun of Eli and his leadership abilities. Tiki is rather kind to his teammates and Eli in the book so I wonder why he taking potshots at him now. Recently in the media there are more reports of his taking shots at his old team, but I have not followed the details. Yes, as he says in his book, he can say what he wants, fine go ahead and say what you want. But when he takes swipes at his old team it makes me respect him less. Maybe it's just to get media attention because negativity sells. But I think this may reveal the underlying problem with why, in my opinion, the Giants are an underachieving team.

In this book Tiki says the Giants are a mediocre team and that the organization needs to do a better job of selecting good talent in the draft and free agency (see page 168). I beg to differ. The Giants, on paper, have an outstanding team, they simply have underperformed the past few years. Tiki Barber, Plaxico Burress, Jeremy Shockey, Eli Manning, a solid offensive line, Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora and a reasonably solid defensive unit is not mediocre. This team underperforms in terms of wins and losses. Whether it's a lousy coach, a young quarterback who makes mistakes, or simply poor play all around, this is not a mediocre team. It's an underachieving team, and other than its Super Bowl run, it was an underachieving team before Coughlin became the head coach. Tiki himself talks about a loss to Carolina in the playoffs where the coach showed him game film after he said "we were out coached" that showed the players missing assignments and making mistakes that cost them the game. There is something not quite right about this team beyond so called mediocrity.

Tiki's post-retirement comments might be some insight into what has been wrong with the Giants the past few years. If the players really don't respect each other, and they don't respect their coach, that is a formula for failure. Not that the Giants are failures, it's a good team, but if Tiki's comments are any indication of a wider opinion on the team, whether spoken or not, I don't see them going anywhere anytime soon.

haring a love of football since childhood, twin brothers Tiki and Ronde, they have both become NFL superstars. The story of their childhood shares their values of family, hard work, and determination.

Wild Card is a book about Tiki and Ronde Barber playing on a football team in Roanoke Virginia in junior high. They are in eighth grade at the time and start to suffer after their team kicker Adam Costa is taken off the team for bad grades. Throughout the football season the Eagles struggle with competing teams because they don't have a valuable kicker to score them needed extra points. They just barely make it into the play offs without Adam, and lost a few games along the way. Adam starts his tutoring lessons, but he seems to not be able to understand his work, denying his team a good kicker even longer. Soon enough, Tiki and Ronde decide to try tutoring Adam themselves, and after thoroughly checking and showing how to make Adam's grades better, he passes his failed tests and is back on the team. Adam helps lead his troubled team to victory, helping kick goals, and the Eagles win against one of the toughest teams by a few points.
I enjoyed this book because i can relate to the characters in the story, especially because i am the same age as them and play sports. I also enjoy reading biographies from famous people before they became famous. Tiki and Ronde struggle to get by in life during the story because their single mom is having trouble finding a decent job that can pay for the house. Ronde and Tiki also express grief in the plot because their mom could not make it to all of their games.I like that the brothers try to help their friend and team by tutoring the kicker. By helping their friend with improving his grades, italso helped the suffering football team in desperate need f a kicker. In the end, Tiki and Ronde's actions bring their team to the championship.

My Brother's Side is by Tiki and Ronde Barber.The story begins when Tiki and Ronde are very young. The two boys do everything together and are very athletic and adventurous. One day, Tiki and Ronde are riding bikes with friends when Tiki has a terrible accident breaking his leg. Though Tiki's doctor tells his mother that he may never play sports again, Tiki is determined to get back on his feet. Ronde is very supportive of Tiki and continues to spend all of his time with him and promising him that one day he will be able to play football again. Two weeks before football practice is to begin, Tiki's doctor removes his brace and Tiki begins practicing and strengthening his leg. Tiki and Ronde are both allowed to play for their school's football team and learn the importance of hard work and love and support for family. Though it is not stated in the story, the biographies at the end of the book mention that Ronde and Tiki both grow up to become fantastic football stars in the NFL.

This story provides a great message about perseverance, hard work, and most importantly, true love and dedication to family.I think it is amazing how Tiki and Ronde Barber remembers all of the stuff when they were just in school playing ball.This book can teach you about not giving up and faith.The moral of the message was wonderful and showed the importance of family, homework, hard work, and most importantly the message that you can do anything you put your mind to.

This book is a real life story about two brothers, Tiki and Ronde Barber, growing up together and playing football. The books talks a lot about what it means to work in a team, and that there is no I in team. It follows these two brothers as they learn to be successful in football, and learn teamwork.
Genre: Realistic Fiction

This is a biography book about Tiki and Ronde Barber when they were young football players. It tells the story of Ronde helping his brother Tiki learn how to protect the football when running. The two worked together and practiced hard so that when game time came and Tiki needed to protect the football he was able to do it.

Summary: "Game Day" is a story of two brothers, both football players, who utilize their talents to win a football game. Ronde and Tiki Barber are both football players. Tiki always receives praise for his play on the football field. He is constantly scoring touchdowns. Ronde is a blocker, which means he is supposed to protect the other players. He hardly ever receives any praise for his work. Their coach notices this and designs a play that will incorporate both players. The play not only showcases both players, but it ends up becoming the winning score in their football game.

Review: I liked reading this story about Ronde and Tiki Baber. In a sense, it is a biography, as it talks about their lives growing up. As we all know, they both end up becoming professional football players so it was comforting to read a story about their rise to this family. Understandably enough, Ronde is upset that he is never congratulated for his "behind-the-scenes" work. His coach wants the best for his team and designs a play the uses both players at the same time. I really enjoyed reading about their ability to cooperate during a play. I would consider reading this to my future students to teach them the power of working together and where it can get you in life.

Teammates is a story about Tiki and Ronde Barber learning how to become better football players. The main character, Tiki is a great runner. But, the team also needs him to improve his carrying skills. Tiki has gotten into a bad habit of carrying the ball unprotected, making a fumble easy for the other team. After one practice game, Tiki’s coach shows him a better way to carry, with four points of contact. Wanting his brother to do better, and not get replaced on the team, Ronde sets up morning practices with Tiki. They practice how to avoid getting stripped of the ball when an opposing team tries to tackle Tiki. Every morning they practice, every game Tiki gets better. On the last game, it’s up to Tiki to hold on the ball and score the winning touchdown to break the tie. He has to shake several defensive tacklers down the field, but he does it! Viking’s win! Its thanks to Tiki and Ronde’s confidence and perseverance that it happened.

Details: This book was written to interest children in grades K-3 and is on a 2.9 reading level.

Red Zone is well put together story of a middle school football team that overcame many adversities, including an epidemic of chicken pox, throughout their post-season playoffs in order to become state champions. It is action packed and emphasizes good sportsmanship and overcoming obstacles. I would especially recommend for children that participate in group sport activities.

Summary:
This story is a true story based on the lives of two twin brothers Tiki and Ronde Barber, brothers who both became famous NFL players. In this story Tiki is getting recognized for all of the touchdowns he is making during the boys football games. Ronde is having trouble understanding why Tiki is getting all of the attention when he is the one blocking for him, and allowing him to make the touchdowns. At the end of the story their coach sets up a play and Ronde scores the winning touchdown. Tiki, Ronde, and the team celebrate their win against their toughest opponent. In the end Ronde realizes that his position on the team is just as important as his brothers because winning is a team effort.
Personal Reflection:
We are big football fans in my home, so when I selected this nonfiction book I knew my son would love it. I really enjoyed the artwork in this book. The moral of the story was great, and I would recommend this book to any parent that has a child in sports.

Classroom Extension:
-This book could be used to teach students about the importance of team work.
-This book could be used when teaching students about sports.

Every professional has their own book.

A great book about the importance of family and never giving up. Boy would really enjoy this book and be able to relate to the brothers in some way, maybe they too experience and injury that kept them from what they loved. Use it to teach teamwork too.

Kickoff was a good short book. I like football so it was intresting to me

A girl named Tyra moves from Florida to England. A girl Alicia is her enemy she is jealous because Tyra is new and is the best at soccer (*editor’s note: football) They play a game against a different team. A player breaks her legs so she can’t play for a while. Review by A.Z.

This book is a great title for young male readers. The plot captures the attention of young boys and encourages them to read. Having material that they can relate to makes this book a great addition to any elementary library.

it's a great book and it has everything i can ask for.AVH

Summary: Tiki and Ronde are twins who both love to play sports. As the summer begins, the boys go out exploring with their friend on their bikes. Tiki tries a dangerous trick and breaks his leg. He is no longer able to play sports with his brother. Ronde tells him he will play for him and throughout the whole summer, Tiki sits on the sidelines watching his brother play. Finally, he is able to take his brace off and start moving around a little bit. The brothers work together to overcome this obstacle and in the end Tiki is able to play football with Rhonde.
Teaching Implications: The main themes that run through this book are brotherhood, determination, perseverance, and teamwork. This book could be used in many ways to work through teamwork within the class. And teach the power of hard work. Tiki and Ronde are now in the NFL following their dreams as professional football players. This could be used to teach the class that hard work and determination will help you overcome many obstacles.

The former running back for the New York Giants gives his story, from when he and his twin brother Ronde were raised by their single mother to his time in the NFL, and after that to when he joined the Today Show on NBC. I am not a big fan of sports but I still really enjoyed this book, and football fans will love it even more!
This is a fascinating autobiography, and we see things about the life of a famous football player that one never hears about on television. He tells the story of the relationship with his wife, and how he never got along very well with his coach, Tom Coughlin. It is too bad that he retired from the Giants the year before they won the Super Bowl, but this is still a great book.

Tiki and Ronde are twins who strive to be the best on the football team; Ronde feels left out in his brother’s wake, but at the end of the story scores a winning touchdown. The narrative is third-person and includes dialogue that mimics natural speech rhythms. The illustrations are bright, using saturated hues. Details are replaced by a slight blurriness that mimics the action of the story.

This book is very good if you like sports books.Tiki Barber now a famous retired running back. Him and his brother Ronde try out for their junior high team they are not doing so well they are second string for the team , they are trying to get the coach to get them to be starers for the team. TIki and Ronde Barber are major characters in the book KICKOFF!