Books & Ballers helps Black and Brown boys build literacy, confidence and the courage to use their voices. Because their minds deserve as much room to grow as their game.
READ WITH CURIOSITY✳SPEAK WITH CONFIDENCE✳LEAD WITH PURPOSE✳BUILD COMMUNITY
01 / THE STORY BEHIND THE PAGES
Big ideas. Young founder. Real purpose.
FROM THE PAGE TO THE FIELD.
Our boys have stories to tell. And futures to write.
Books & Ballers is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded by young author, soccer player and wrestler Preston Lincoln. We bring reading, leadership and community together. Preston published From Pages to Pavements at age 10. His story is a reminder that young people have something to say right now. On the soccer field, on the wrestling mat and on the page, Preston brings his whole self to what he does.
With Dr. Domonique “Dr. Dom” Revere, we’re creating space for boys to strengthen their minds, practice communication and see themselves as more than what they can do on a field or mat.
PRESTON LINCOLNAuthor. Soccer player. Wrestler. Founder.
OUR BELIEFBuilding brains. Building futures.
02 / BEYOND THE BOOK
Pages. Presence. Purpose.
Reading opens the door. What happens next matters, too.
01
Meet the author
Preston’s author visits connect storytelling, creative expression and the possibility of becoming an author yourself.
STORIES & POSSIBILITY02
Level Up Academy
A confidence and conversation experience for middle school boys, with space for reflection, healthy habits and connection.
CONFIDENCE & COMMUNICATION03
Community in action
Through Bloom with a Book and community care initiatives, we connect books, service and a sense of responsibility to one another.
LITERACY & SERVICE
Program overview. Dates, locations and participation details will be shared as offerings are scheduled.
ON THE HORIZON / SPRING 2027
THE LEVEL UP SUMMIT.
More room to grow. More courage to be heard.
SPRING 2027
A new chapter for Books & Ballers.
We’re planning the Level Up Summit for spring 2027, creating space for young people to explore confidence, communication, leadership and possibility.
Rooted in our belief that strong minds and clear voices matter, the summit will bring the Books & Ballers mission into a shared experience.
WHENSpring 2027
WHERELocation to be announced
WHAT’S NEXTDate, program and registration details to come
Planning is underway. Registration is not yet open.
03 / THE READING ROOM
Meet the reader. Build the skill.
A place for words, questions and big ideas. Free resources for readers and the people in their corner.
NO SIGN-UP. JUST POSSIBILITY.
A starting point, not a label.
A reader can discuss big ideas and still need help decoding words. Choose by the skill you want to practice. Keep topics age-respectful and interests at the center.
Choose a skill to practice. These paths overlap, and readers can use more than one.
WORD READING & FLUENCY
m·a·pSMALL SOUNDS. BIG STARTS.
B&B / FREE RESOURCE
Practice sheet • 10 min
Hear it. Build it. Read it.
A grown-up guided practice for readers working on short-a words. Use after these letter sounds have been taught. Choose topics and presentation that respect the reader’s age.
VOCABULARY
Aa.WORDS HAVE POWER.
B&B / FREE RESOURCE
Word collection • 10 min
Words for the everyday
Start with listening and conversation. Reading these words independently is optional. A grown-up can read every word aloud.
VOCABULARY
Aa.WORDS HAVE POWER.
B&B / FREE RESOURCE
Word collection • 15 min
Words that stretch your thinking
For readers ready to explain ideas and relationships. These are conversation and meaning goals, not grade labels or decoding levels.
WORD READING & FLUENCY
FIND YOUR RHYTHM.
B&B / FREE RESOURCE
Original passage • 10 min
Read with rhythm
A short original story for supported rereading. Choose this when the reader can read most words accurately, with help for unfamiliar ones. This is not a decodable or leveled text.
COMPREHENSION
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
B&B / FREE RESOURCE
Any-book study guide • 15 min
From the page to your perspective
Use with a picture book, chapter, comic or nonfiction selection. Listen, speak, draw or write your responses. Select two or three questions per sitting.
COMPREHENSION
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
B&B / FREE RESOURCE
Story + study guide • 15 min
A different kind of win
An original discussion passage about leadership and community. Read independently or listen to a grown-up. No assigned grade or measured text level.
FAMILY TOOLS
GROW TOGETHER.
B&B / FREE RESOURCE
Printable journal • 5 min
Your reading passport
A flexible record of reading, listening and discovery. Progress is also a new question, a stronger explanation or the courage to read again.
FAMILY TOOLS
GROW TOGETHER.
B&B / FREE RESOURCE
Family playbook • 10–15 min
A reading routine that fits
An adaptable routine for home, mentorship or a small group. Short, steady practice can fit alongside sports and everyday life.
READING LISTS BY GRADE
Find their next good book.
Stories where Black and Brown children belong, imagine, question and grow. Start with interest. Make room for choice.
Grades K–2
Picture books and an illustrated early chapter book for reading together, talking and growing confidence.
01 / BOOK PICKPicture book · Identity & joy
I Am Every Good Thing
Derrick Barnes · Illustrated by Gordon C. James
A Black boy celebrates his imagination, strengths and possibilities.
TALK ABOUT IT
What is one good thing about you that you want the world to know?
These are curated browsing suggestions, not measured reading levels or required assignments. Grade bands are flexible. Try read-alouds, shared reading or audiobooks for access to ideas, and use targeted texts for word-reading practice. Ask your library about print, audio and accessible editions. Book details link to publishers or authors; links are not affiliated.
KEEP EXPLORING
A bigger world of reading.
Find books that reflect the reader’s life and open windows into someone else’s. Look for joy, adventure, science, sport, family and imagination, too.
For families and educators: how to use these resources
These original starter materials offer practice and conversation. They are not a placement test, a complete curriculum or a substitute for individualized instruction. No resource has an assigned Lexile or measured reading level. A grown-up can read a text aloud to support vocabulary and comprehension while a reader practices word reading separately.
The structure draws on IES guidance distinguishing language, sound–letter connections, decoding and connected-text practice. The activities themselves have not been independently evaluated. For persistent reading difficulties, work with a teacher or qualified reading specialist to identify the support a reader needs.
Book lists may use age or grade bands. Use those as browsing aids alongside interests, maturity, accessibility and the purpose of reading. Resource links are provided for exploration; no affiliation is implied.
WHY THIS WORK MATTERS / THE EVIDENCE
See the need. See the possibility.
Black and Brown boys deserve strong instruction, books that reflect their lives and people who believe in their voices. The numbers help us see the need. They do not define a child’s potential.
2024 NATIONAL READING ASSESSMENT
Percentage at or above NAEP Proficient in reading
National estimates for male students, by reported race/ethnicity. Rounded to whole percentages.
2024 NAEP reading results for Black and Hispanic male students
NAEP Proficient is an assessment achievement standard. It does not mean “at grade level,” and scoring below it does not mean a child cannot read. These figures describe groups, not individual readers.
“Brown” is a community term, not a single NAEP reporting category. Hispanic male results are one relevant group and do not represent every Brown boy. The table uses the source’s Black, Hispanic and male categories.
Our response: meaningful books, explicit skill practice, conversation and consistent support. Every reader deserves room to grow.
Data checked November 11, 2026. NAEP is a sample-based national assessment; these figures are estimates, not a measure of Books & Ballers participants or local school outcomes.
MORE THAN WHAT THE SCOREBOARD SAYS.
Strong minds. Clear voices. Limitless stories.
THAT’S THE BOOKS & BALLERS WAY.
THE CAMPAIGN / LITERACY IS LIBERTY
A belief you can wear. A story you can live.
Books in hand. Ideas in motion. Possibility on the field.
Our Literacy Is Liberty campaign brings the message into everyday life, from the library to the soccer field.
Photographs from the Books & Ballers Literacy Is Liberty campaign.
04 / WEAR THE BELIEF
The campaign tee. The real design.
THE ORIGINAL CAMPAIGN SHIRT
The black Books & Ballers tee features a front chest logo and the bold red and white “Literacy Is Liberty” artwork on the back.
BOOKS & BALLERS / CAMPAIGN COLLECTION
Literacy Is Liberty
A message with something to say. The original campaign shirt, shown here in our campaign photographs.
Color
Black with red and white artwork
Design
Front chest logo + full back print
Availability
Online ordering coming soon
Pricing, sizes and shipping details will be posted when online ordering opens.
This is the actual campaign design. Checkout is not yet connected.
A COMMUNITY IN EVERY CHAPTER.
Books in their hands. Possibility in their future.
