Basketball Legend, Bestselling Author Speaks at Library Event

A basketball legend and bestselling author spoke to a full house last week in the Friend’s Room at the Newport Beach Central Library.

NBA All-Star and author of 15 books, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar introduced his newest novel, “Mycroft and Sherlock, the Empty Birdcage,” at the Oct. 3 event. The book was released late last month by Titan Books.

The novel is the third in his engaging series of historical mysteries featuring Sherlock Holmes’ older brother Mycroft. An early review by Publisher’s Weekly touts the novel as Abdul-Jabbar and co-author Anna Waterhouse’s “best yet” and predicts that “Sherlockians will be enthralled.”

Abdul-Jabbar is a global icon that changed the game of professional basketball, library officials wrote in an announcement. Since his stellar professional career, he has gone on to become a celebrated New York Times-bestselling author, filmmaker, ambassador of education, and Time Magazine columnist.

Attendees at the library event listened to him talk about his new novel and his evolution from street ball player to successful athlete, author, producer, and community activist.

The program was funded by the Friends of the Library.

For more information, visit newportbeachlibrary.org or call (949) 717-3800.