Above the Noise My Story of Chasing Calm - By DeMar DeRozan_Biography and Memoir_VERGE Lifestyle Online Bookstore

Above the Noise: My Story of Chasing Calm - By DeMar DeRozan

$ 28.00
Book cover typeHardcover

Above the Noise: My Story of Chasing Calm

By DeMar DeRozan

Foreword by: Gregg Popovich
with: Dave Zarum

Publisher: Harmony / Rodale (2024) 

ISBN-13: 9780593581261

Pages: 240

Genre(s): Biography & Memoir, Sports, Culture

About the Book

From one of the most outspoken and respected NBA athletes comes a groundbreaking and remarkable memoir chronicling a very public struggle with depression, in the hopes that other people will not suffer alone.

"As men, and especially Black men, we don’t talk about our mental health enough. We struggle to admit when things aren’t okay, even when it’s obvious to everybody around us. I’ve seen how toxic that can become. I’ve experienced it myself, keeping everything under wraps until your head and heart are full of fire and rage.”

DeMar DeRozan, six-time NBA All-Star, has been called a “basketball savant” (ESPN) and “the best closer in the NBA” (GQ)—but when he went public with his depression, it sparked a conversation that reached far beyond the court. By breaking the stigma of speaking out, he added a new, seldom-heard voice to the mental health dialogue: a successful Black male athlete, openly naming his pain and advocating for others to do the same.

Now it’s time to tell the full story. Born and raised in Compton, DeRozan was no stranger to hardship—living in poverty, losing friends to gang violence. In worn-out school gyms and community centers, fueled by hunger and a desire to prove himself, he started to rise, but doubts followed.

In Above the Noise, DeRozan opens up about his proudest triumphs and the times he felt so weighed down he couldn't get out of bed. He reflects on what it took to make a name for himself in a new country after getting drafted by the Toronto Raptors, the pressure of playing with veteran athletes as a twenty-year-old rookie, and the pain of losing role models.

From a scared, angry kid to a confident father of five, DeRozan traces his journey to basketball stardom and the forces that honed him into the player—and the slowly healing person—he is today. It will encourage anyone who has ever felt alone in their struggles and inspire people to rise above the noise and speak their truth.

5.74 "(W) x 8.54 "(H) x 0.87 "(D)
12 Oz

DeMar DeRozan

DeMar DeRozan is a six-time NBA All-Star and two-time gold medalist for the United States Men’s Basketball Team. A father of five, DeRozan frequently returns to community centers in Compton, California, where he once practiced as a teenager, to mentor the next generation of basketball players.

Dave Zarum

Dave Zarum is an award-winning sportswriter and editor and the author of NBA 75: The Definitive History. He lives in Toronto.


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Above the Noise: My Story of Chasing Calm - By DeMar DeRozan

$ 28.00

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