STANDING TALL

Listeners who don't follow basketball may have come to learn a little about C. Vivian Stringer through the Don Imus affair in 2007. But fans know her as a longtime winning college coach. In her memoir she opens up about her basketball and non-basketball worlds, sending clear, positive messages along the way. Through Stringer's anecdotes and advice, the listener hears lessons without lectures, hears about tragedies without self-pity. Throughout her life, Stringer has stayed the course through determination in her career and the support of a loving family. In her narration, Karen Chilton is just as consistent, sounding like an instructor who knows how to keep students interested in a story that has a purpose. She doesn't overdramatize the story of a woman who loves basketball but who is much more than a coach. M.B. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: JULY 2008]