CHARACTER
The Crossoverby Kwame Alexander

Vondie Little

Vondie Little

Quick Facts

  • Role: Best friend to twins Josh 'Filthy McNasty' Bell and Jordan 'JB' Bell; starter on the Wildcats (wears #17)
  • First Appearance: Early practice and game-day poems, including “Practice” and “The Bet, Part One”
  • Distinct Detail: Long legs that help in wind sprints
  • Key Relationships: The Bell twins; the Wildcats team; the Bell family by extension

Who They Are

A steady pulse of humor and loyalty, Vondie Little anchors the twins’ world to everyday middle-school life. Where the Bells juggle a father’s legacy, rising stakes, and a fractured twin bond, Vondie represents the normal rhythms—friendship, team banter, small triumphs, first relationships. His minimal physical description (beyond those “long legs”) allows him to function as a mirror of the twins’ peer group and a living measure of what’s changing around them. Through him, themes of Family and Brotherhood and Coming of Age land with clarity: family can be chosen as well as blood, and growing up often means learning to support someone else’s spotlight.

Personality & Traits

Vondie’s light touch masks real depth. He’s the teammate who cracks a joke at the perfect moment, the friend who texts after the buzzer—not about the score first, but about Josh’s dad. His steadiness makes him the book’s barometer for “ordinary” adolescence, which in turn throws the Bell family’s extraordinary pressures into relief.

  • Humorous and goofy: At halftime, he starts “dancing the Snake, / only he looks like a seal,” defusing tension and easing the locker room’s nerves.
  • Loyal friend: When Josh is isolated after the fight with JB, he reaches out to Vondie at lunch; Vondie’s presence keeps Josh tethered to something normal.
  • Supportive teammate: As #17, he rebounds, dishes, and does the connective work that holds a team together; after the semifinal, he texts updates but pivots quickly to ask about Mr. Bell’s health.
  • Observant: At the haircut calamity, he “hollers, / OH, SNAP!”—a comic burst that also underscores the moment’s shock and weight.

Character Journey

Vondie doesn’t transform so much as he stays—reliably, recognizably—the same, which is precisely his narrative power. As the season intensifies and the Bell family crisis deepens, he becomes a touchstone of continuity: on the court he keeps the ball moving; off the court he keeps the texts coming. When “Even Vondie” gets a girlfriend, it’s not a dramatic personal shift for him, but it sharpens Josh’s sense of loneliness and change. That contrast turns Vondie into a thematic anchor: the world keeps growing and spinning, even when one household is in free fall. His steadiness invites Josh (and readers) to see that brotherhood includes the friends who stay beside you while you figure things out.

Key Relationships

  • Josh Bell: With Josh, Vondie is a stabilizer. He’s the first text, the reliable laugh, the teammate who makes space for Josh’s brilliance without resentment. Their friendship keeps Josh connected when the twin bond frays, showing how friendships can provide the daily scaffolding that family crisis can erode.
  • Jordan “JB” Bell: Vondie’s easy rapport with JB rounds out the trio’s chemistry—supportive, competitive, and playful. His presence softens the edges of the twins’ conflict, helping the team dynamic outlast personal tensions.
  • The Wildcats: For the team, Vondie is connective tissue—someone who may not headline but helps them win close games and sustain morale. He embodies the idea that championships are built not just by stars but by the dependable players who do the small things right, consistently.

Defining Moments

Even Vondie’s “little” moments carry big thematic weight, revealing how ordinary acts shore up people under extraordinary strain.

  • The halftime dance: His impromptu “Snake” breaks the team’s anxiety. Why it matters: It models emotional leadership—levity as strategy—showing that joy can reset a team’s mental game.
  • The wind sprints (“Practice”): Josh intentionally lets Vondie win the final sprint. Why it matters: It’s a quiet tribute to friendship and respect; Josh honors Vondie’s effort, and the gesture underscores how their bond runs deeper than competition.
  • Texts after the semifinal: He reports a 40–39 double-overtime win, then immediately asks about Mr. Bell. Why it matters: Vondie reframes victory, placing care above clout and reminding us that, for this crew, love is the real scoreboard.
  • “Even Vondie” gets a girlfriend: A small life update that lands like a milestone. Why it matters: It deepens the [Coming of Age] arc by highlighting how peers move forward at different speeds—and how that can make even a star feel left behind.
  • The hair “calamity”: His “OH, SNAP!” amplifies the shock when JB cuts Josh’s locks. Why it matters: As the onlooker’s gasp, it marks the moment as a rupture, not just a prank—friend-side narration that frames the fallout.

Essential Quotes

At the End of Warm-Ups, My Brother Tries to Dunk

Coach calls us in, does his Phil Jackson impersonation. Love ignites the spirit, brings teams together, he says. JB and I glance at each other, ready to bust out laughing, but Vondie, our best friend, beats us to it.

This moment captures Vondie’s comic timing and social intuition: he releases the laugh everyone is holding, letting the team exhale. It also subtly positions him as glue—the friend who bridges seriousness and play so the group can function.

Text Messages from Vondie

8:06 we won, 40–39. We dedicated the game ball to your pop. 8:07 Is he better? You and JB coming to practice? Filthy, you there?

The order of information tells you everything: result, dedication, concern. Vondie’s priorities—care before celebration—spotlight the story’s heartbeat: teammates are family, and victories matter most when shared with the people you love.

“dancing the Snake, / only he looks like a seal,”

A witty, visual snapshot of Vondie’s goofiness. The image lightens a tight moment and shows how humor can be as galvanizing as a huddle speech.

“OH, SNAP!”

Fast, loud, and honest, this reaction crystallizes the shock of Josh’s lost locks. As the witness voice, Vondie turns a bad joke into a turning point, signaling to readers that something serious just broke between the twins.

“Even Vondie / has a girlfriend now.”

This line lands like a quiet ache for Josh—proof that childhood is giving way to new allegiances and first loves. Vondie’s milestone isn’t about him changing character; it’s about the landscape shifting around the protagonist, sharpening the novel’s [Family and Brotherhood] tensions and its [Coming of Age] momentum.