From Publishers Weekly
The Bob Hurley profiled here isn't as well known to the average sports fan as his son, Bobby, the Duke University basketball superstar. But the elder Hurley's profile should rise quickly, thanks to sportswriter Wojnarowski's fine and detailed look at the "miracle" Hurley has achieved as coach for more than 30 years of the men's basketball team at St. Anthony's High School in Jersey City, NJ. Wojnarowski provides an excellent look at the phenomenon of the school itself, which Hurley and two Felician nuns managed to keep open even after it lost funding from the church, educating "the poorest of the poor" (more than 50% of the students' families lived below the poverty line). He delivers a finely etched portrait of Hurley, whose passion and drive enabled him to construct "a national powerhouse program out of an enrollment that struggled to stay at 200" and keep the school's decade-long streak of 100% college acceptance. But Wojnarowski's main focus is on the 2003-2004 season, in which a varsity team that Hurley considered "the most academically, athletically and socially underachieving in St. Anthony basketball history" overcame its "dysfunctional" nature and had an undefeated season. Wojnarowski's sensitive, insightful look at the social backgrounds and emotional development of the varsity players-and Hurley's remarkable understanding of them-will keep readers riveted throughout this book, which is one of the best recent pieces of sports journalism. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
In 31 years as head basketball coach at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, New Jersey, Bob Hurley has won 22 state titles. One might expect St. Anthony to be a sprawling urban campus with thousands of students from which to cull elite basketball players. On the contrary, it's a tiny school, constantly on the edge of bankruptcy and held together by a determined band of Felician nuns. Nearly all of Hurley's players have attended college, many on basketball scholarships. New Jersey sportswriter Wojnarowski chronicles St. Anthony's 2003-04 season, which began with a group of players Hurley categorized as undermotivated and unfocused. They weren't for long. The season was a success, and the four seniors all accepted scholarships to Division I basketball programs. This inspiring account of good people making a difference one step at a time stands as a compelling counterpoint to Ian O'Connor's The Jump (p.1129), in which basketball talent is exploited at various levels for the profit of all but the player. Wes Lukowsky
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Book Description
The inspiring story of an inner-city basketball team and the fiery coaching genius who leads them to greatness. On the mean streets of Jersey City, St. Anthony High School is more than a tiny brick schoolhouse-it is a beacon of hope. Though the school constantly teeters on the brink of bankruptcy, it is held together by two feisty Felician nuns devoted to helping students overcome the scourges of poverty by preparing them for college careers and a chance at a brighter future. And each year from this student body of just over two hundred, Coach Bob Hurley forges an elite nationally ranked basketball team through hard work, his coaching genius, and the sheer force of his persona. In Bob Hurley's gym there are no earrings, no tattoos, and there is never any backtalk. There is only hard-nosed, old-fashioned basketball executed in its purest form, with precision passing and a relentless, swarming defense that has brought 800 victories, twenty-two state titles, and two national championships to a program that has sent over a hundred players to college scholarships. But in the fall of 2003, Hurley will put it all on the line, and fight to build a team of young men he calls "the most dysfunctional group I've had in thirty-two years" into champions, while keeping the school he loves alive to continue its educational mission at any cost. In The Miracle of St. Anthony, one of America's most acclaimed sportswriters, Adrian Wojnarowski, brings the stories of this coaching legend and his St. Anthony Friars players to vivid life. A four-year starter torn between what he could've been and the pull of the streets must prove to his teammates that he can lead when it really counts. a senior haunted by a family tree of drug dealers tries to redeem himself in his coach's eyes. And the privileged son of a suburban Connecticut family who has come to Jersey City to play for Hurley and feed his NBA dreams must find a way to win when his shooting stroke goes cold. In a dramatic narrative, Wojnarowski takes you from the explosive locker room speeches to the final whistle on the pressure-packed hardcourt at the championship final. The Miracle of St. Anthony is a stirring portrait of basketball and life in the inner city, a heartrending story of hope that is sure to become a classic.

From the Back Cover
"The Miracle of St. Anthony is about basketball, but it's also about race, education, sociology, inner cities, and America in this new millennium. Adrian Wojnarowski is a wonderful writer, and this is a wonderful book." -Bill Reynolds, Providence Journal sports reporter and author of Fall River Dreams "Everything conspires against the kids at St. Anthony's, not only their dingy gym, their decaying high school, and a city where despair is as common as drunks hanging outside a tattoo parlor, but they also conspire against themselves, with attitude to spare. They need a lot more than prayers, but thanks to the devotion of a couple of dedicated nuns and a veteran coach who won't take no for an answer, they get it in Adrain Wojnarowski's heart-stopping saga about a championship season that is as improbable as it is delightful, as poignant as it uplifting." -Madeleine Blais, author of In These Girls, Hope is a Muscle and Uphill Walkers "The North Jersey gritty urbanism of Richard Price meets harsh Hoop Dreams reality in Adrian Wojnarowski's The Miracle of St. Anthony, a beautifully crafted tale dedicated to the proposition that no child be left behind as long as they are willing to follow a true American hero like Bob Hurley." -Harvey Araton, New York Times sports reporter and coauthor of Money Players "It takes two ingredients to make a book special: a great story and a great storyteller. The Miracle of St. Anthony has both. Bob Hurley is a remarkable coach; Adrian Wojnarowski his equal as a writer." -John Feinstein, author of A Season on the Brink

About the Author
Adrian Wojnarowski is a sports columnist for The Record of New Jersey, where he was honored as Columnist of the Year in 1997 and 2002 by the AP Sports Editors, and is a frequent contributor to ESPN.com. He has appeared numerous times as a featured commentator on ESPN, on Jim Rome’s television programs, WFAN radio, and the MSG Network.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

On the mean streets of Jersey City, St. Anthony High School is more than a tiny brickschoolhouse—it is a beacon of hope. Though the school constantly teeters on the brink of bankruptcy, it is held together by Felician nuns devoted to helping students overcome the scourges of poverty by preparing them for college educations and a brighter future. And each year from the student body of just over 200, Coach Bob Hurley forges an elite nationally ranked basketball team through hard work, his coaching genius, and the sheer force of his personality. In thirty-one years as a coach, Hurley has won twenty-two state championships, two USA Today national titles, and has sent all of his players to college except for one (including his son Bobby, one of the greatest players in college basketball history). Award-winning sportswriter Adrian Wojnarowski brings the stories of the St. Anthony 2003￯﾿ﾽ2004 season to vivid life, as Hurley struggles to turn a troubled group of players into state champions and national title contenders again—while keeping the school he loves alive to continue its educational mission at any cost.

Author Biography: Adrian Wojnarowski is a sports columnist for The Record of New Jersey, where he was honored as Columnist of the Year in 1997 and 2002 by the AP Sports Editors, and is a frequent contributor to ESPN.com. He has appeared numerous times as a featured commentator on ESPN, on Jim Rome's television programs, WFAN radio, and the MSG Network.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

The Bob Hurley profiled here isn't as well known to the average sports fan as his son, Bobby, the Duke University basketball superstar. But the elder Hurley's profile should rise quickly, thanks to sportswriter Wojnarowski's fine and detailed look at the "miracle" Hurley has achieved as coach for more than 30 years of the men's basketball team at St. Anthony's High School in Jersey City, NJ. Wojnarowski provides an excellent look at the phenomenon of the school itself, which Hurley and two Felician nuns managed to keep open even after it lost funding from the church, educating "the poorest of the poor" (more than 50% of the students' families lived below the poverty line). He delivers a finely etched portrait of Hurley, whose passion and drive enabled him to construct "a national powerhouse program out of an enrollment that struggled to stay at 200" and keep the school's decade-long streak of 100% college acceptance. But Wojnarowski's main focus is on the 2003-2004 season, in which a varsity team that Hurley considered "the most academically, athletically and socially underachieving in St. Anthony basketball history" overcame its "dysfunctional" nature and had an undefeated season. Wojnarowski's sensitive, insightful look at the social backgrounds and emotional development of the varsity players -- and Hurley's remarkable understanding of them -- will keep readers riveted throughout this book, which is one of the best recent pieces of sports journalism.

Library Journal