Living In A Two-Faced Jungle

The inspiration for the Netflix film Rez Ball—produced by Lebron James<BR><BR>The moving story of a Navajo high school basketball team, its members struggling with the everyday challenges of high school, adolescence, and family, and the great and unique obstacles facing Native Americans living on reservations.<BR><BR>Deep in the heart of northern Arizona, in a small and isolated patch of the vast 17.5-million-acre Navajo reservation, sits Chinle High School. Here, basketball is passion, passed from grandparent to parent to child. Rez Ball is a sport for winters where dark and cold descend fast and there is little else to do but roam mesa tops, work, and wonder what the future holds. The town has 4,500 residents and the high school arena seats 7,000. Fans drive thirty, fifty, even eighty miles to see the fast-paced and highly competitive matchups that are more than just games to players and fans.<BR>  <BR> Celebrated Times journalist Michael Powell brings us a narrative of triumph and hardship, a moving story about a basketball team on a Navajo reservation that shows how important sports can be to youths in struggling communities, and the transcendent magic and painful realities that confront Native Americans living on reservations. This book details his season-long immersion in the team, town, and culture, in which there were exhilarating wins, crushing losses, and conversations on long bus rides across the desert about dreams of  leaving home and the fear of the same.

Delve into the shocking, true story-told as if the reader's life depends on it-of Michael A. Powell's childhood, 18 years of addiction horror stories, and an inspiring recovery journey with the help of his faith.Told as three books in one, Living In A Two-Faced Jungle recounts the tumultuous life of author Michael A. Powell. Pulling its namesake from life itself, Michael recounts the really good-and really awful-experiences that have led his life to where it is today.From a young age, Michael learned the meanings of betrayal, anguish, hurt, confusion, guilt, and shame. Abuse, sexual encounters, and racism clouded an otherwise happy childhood-and by the time he was in high school, life bucked him again. Michael nearly lethally overdosed on the eve of his 17th birthday. From ages 14 to 32, addiction ruled his life. He joined the U.S. Navy in 1989 and returned home in 1993 as a Veteran of Operation Desert Shield/Storm. At 32, recovery became non-negotiable.Michael infuses his very soul into Living In A Two-Faced Jungle, including stories about his relationships, the possibility of having a child out of wedlock, finding God in life, and his steps in recovery.Real and raw, Living In A Two-Faced Jungle is a great pick for recovering addicts, veterans, and readers with a passion for experiencing other life situations first-hand. It is intended for adults, as it deals with heavy topic