Brothers on Three: A True Story of Family, Resistance, and Hope on a Reservation in Montana

By Abraham Streep and Abe Streep

Book Overview

**Winner of the 2021 Montana Book Award**
**Winner of the 2021 New Mexico-Arizona General Nonfiction Book Award**
**Finalist for the Spur Award for Best Contemporary Nonfiction**
**A New York Times Editors' Choice Pick**

"A heart-stomping, heart-stopping read. Unsentimental. Unforgettable. Astonishing. Brothers on Three captures the roar of a community spirit powered by blood history, loyalty, and ferocious love."
--Debra Magpie Earling, author of Perma Red

From journalist Abe Streep, a story of coming-of-age on a reservation in the American West and a team uniting a community

March 11, 2017, was a night to remember: in front of the hopeful eyes of thousands of friends, family members, and fans, the Arlee Warriors would finally bring the high school basketball state championship title home to the Flathead Indian Reservation. The game would become the stuff of legend, with the boys revered as local heroes. The team's place in Montana history was now cemented, but for starters Will Mesteth, Jr. and Phillip Malatare, life would keep moving on--senior year was just beginning.

In Brothers on Three, we follow Phil and Will, along with their teammates, coaches, and families, as they balance the pressures of adolescence, shoulder the dreams of their community, and chart their own individual courses for the future.

Brothers on Three is not simply a story about high school basketball, state championships, and a winning team. It is a book about community, and it is about boys on the cusp of adulthood finding their way through the intersecting worlds they inhabit and forging their own paths to personhood.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1250210682
• ISBN13: 9781250210685
• Release Date: September 2021
• Publisher: Celadon Books
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 1.26 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

An inspiring and unforgettable basketball story

Brothers on Three is the riveting story of the Arlee Warriors Boys Basketball team from Montana's Flathead Indian Reservation and their state championship win. Abe Streep interviewed players, coaches, families, and teachers to be able to create a three dimensional picture of the community. He was conscious that he was an outsider and took care to avoid inserting himself into the story. He took time to know and understand the people and their values, and ask tribal members how they wished to be identified. Thorough research provided a historical and social context and shed light on the effects of intergenerational trauma and racism. Native American athletes in Montana experience racism which can take many forms including an ugly slur uttered during a game and their low recruitment rates by Montana colleges. I appreciated learning more about these admirable young people, their community, and the joys and struggles they experienced. The Arlee Warriors are inspiring, not only for their hard work and achievements on the basketball court, but also because they came together to create viral videos which raise awareness about depression and suicide. The boys were deeply affected by a suicide cluster that had occurred which involved both teens and adults. Brothers on Three is an unforgettable, well-written, real-life story of hope, resilience, family and community that will interest basketball fans and those, like me, who know little about the game, but love to learn about the human experience. Thanks, to @CeladonBooks and @AbeStreep for an ARC. #CeladonReads #BrothersOnThree #partner