Aaron Brooks - Rise Above

Aaron Brooks has gone from living in one of the poorest neighborhoods in America to being the starting quarterback for the New Orleans Saints. Brooks has started every game for the Saints over the past four seasons and led the team to their first ever playoff victory in 2000. In Rise Above, Brooks talks about what he did to become one of the NFL's elite quarterbacks.

Aaron Brooks - Rise Above

Rise Above is the latest book in the Positively For Kids series of autobiographies of professional athletes. In Rise Above, Aaron Brooks writes about the challenges and obstacles he faced in rising above the poverty he faced growing up in Newport News, Virginia. Brooks talks about surviving off food stamps and school lunches, receiving a college football scholarship at the University of Virginia and eventually becoming the QB for the New Orleans Saints. This is a great story about what it takes to succeed in life and the importance of making smart choices. While you may have watched Aaron Brooks play football on Sunday afternoon, you probably didn't know about some of Aaron's struggles earlier in his life. Rise Above is also filled with loads of pictures of Aaron Brooks from his childhood and his years as a star with the Virginia Cavaliers. It's hard to believe that skinny, bow-legged kid would go on to become an NFL star.

Aaron Brooks - Rise and Win!

Rise Above looks at the importance hard work, faith, and the help of others plays in facing challenges in life and becoming succesful. What are some of the things that motivate you during difficult times to become a person who can "rise above" hard times and succeed? Write an essay, telling Positively For Kids what you do to rise above difficult circumstances and you could win a trip to a New Orleans Saints game and a Nintendo Game Cube! To enter this contest, click here.

Aaron Brooks - Fun Facts

One of Aaron's nicknames when he was a kid was weasel.

Aaron Brooks and his wife, Tisa, were married in June, 2003.

In his senior year of high school, Aaron Brooks played football and basketball against future NBA star, Allen Iverson.

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