A celebration of athletes, all of them women, in a book heavy on facts and firsts, and full of black-and-white photographs. Few people know that the first person to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel was a woman; even fewer know that it was a female pitcher who struck out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig in one exhibition game in 1931. This riveting book is brimming with stories of such little-known heroines, but also includes dozens of larger-than-life, mostly 20th- century, sports figures: Billie Jean King, Wilma Rudolph, Babe Zaharias, Althea Gibson, Nancy Lopez, Susan Butcher, Martina Navratilova, and others. Macy (A Whole New Ball Game, 1993, etc.) makes clear that most of these women—if not all—faced the hostility and ridicule of the male sports establishment and the press. For example, John Tunis's false statements about the 1928 Olympics 800-meter women's run (``Below us on the cinder path were . . . wretched women, five of whom dropped out before the finish, while five collapsed after reaching the tape'') resulted in the IOC's vote in 1929 to eliminate women's track and field events from future Olympics competitions. The lively text, coupled with the photos, ads, trading cards, and other illustrations, is informative and commanding. (b&w photos, chronology, bibliography, index) (Nonfiction. 12+)
Pub Date: June 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-8050-4147-8
Page Count: 217
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1996
Who is next in the ocean food chain? Pallotta has a surprising answer in this picture book glimpse of one curious boy. Danny, fascinated by plankton, takes his dory and rows out into the ocean, where he sees shrimp eating those plankton, fish sand eels eating shrimp, mackerel eating fish sand eels, bluefish chasing mackerel, tuna after bluefish, and killer whales after tuna. When an enormous humpbacked whale arrives on the scene, Danny’s dory tips over and he has to swim for a large rock or become—he worries’someone’s lunch. Surreal acrylic illustrations in vivid blues and red extend the story of a small boy, a small boat, and a vast ocean, in which the laws of the food chain are paramount. That the boy has been bathtub-bound during this entire imaginative foray doesn’t diminish the suspense, and the facts Pallotta presents are solidly researched. A charming fish tale about the one—the boy—that got away. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-88106-075-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This latest Froggy title (Froggy Goes to School, 1996, etc.) is utterly unfocused, with the star careening from soccer dolt to Mr. Superkick. Froggy’s team has a big game coming up with the Wild Things, and he is trying to remember the mantra his father, and assistant coach, taught him: “Head it! Boot it! Knee it! Shoot it! But don’t use your hands!” But illegally touching the ball seems to be the least of Froggy’s worries; distraction is his problem. He is so busy turning cartwheels, tying his shoes, and more, that the only time he makes contact with the ball is when it bounces off his head by mistake. Then, when the Wild Things make a breakaway, Froggy has some dazzling moves to avert a score, but forgetfully grabs the ball at the last second. The other team gets a penalty kick, converts it, but then Froggy makes a field-long kick for a game-winning score. London forces Froggy into too many guises—the fool, the hero, the klutz, the fancy dancer—but none of them stick. Remkiewicz’s illustrations have charm; it is in their appeal that this book will find its audience. (Picture book. 2-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-670-88257-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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