Women in Sports: 50 Fearless Athletes Who Played to Win

Exhaustive and enlightening--don't miss it.

Gr 4 Up--Utterly browsable and completely engaging, this collection of 50 female athletes offers up brief glimpses into the lives and careers of a relatively diverse group of women. Wandering far off the well-beaten path of familiar names (Billie Jean King, Wilma Rudolph, Mia Hamm), the book also highlights women who excelled (or currently excel) at less traditional activities, such as roller derby (Ann Calvello), archery (Kim Soo-Nyung), bodybuilding (Bev Francis), and refereeing (Violet Palmer). Ignotofsky clearly made every effort to scour the globe and include athletes from many different countries. Each spread profiles an individual and features a page-length description of background and career high points, a quote from the athlete, and a cheerful illustration captioned with additional facts. Organized chronologically by the athletes' birth year, this compendium, taken as a whole, is a captivating look at the history of women in sports, emphasizing that no individual athlete is more or less important than the next. Information about anatomy, pay inequalities between men and women, and other related topics can be found throughout. The writing is accessible to a wide range of readers, and the material is concise and orderly, often leaving readers wanting more. Fortunately, a thorough bibliography is appended, making it easy to dive deeper into the lives of some of these fascinating trailblazers. VERDICT This title is as edifying as it is entertaining; a timely addition to nonfiction collections.--Jody Kopple, Shady Hill School, Cambridge, MA

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

2018 Amelia Bloomer List selection, American Library Association

"Exhaustive and enlightening—don't miss it."
- Kirkus Reviews

"This is one of the books we've been waiting for—a compendium of great women athletes and the struggles they faced. As Billie Jean King taught us, 'Pressure is a privilege.'"
- Lesley Visser, Hall of Fame sportscaster

"This luminescent book tells the stories of women and girls who have not only excelled in athletics, but also often changed the world by doing so. I was agog at these lively biographies, and dazzled by the accompanying illustrations that seem to cartwheel, swim, pole vault, and double flip off the page. This is a book for girls who want inspiration on the field, in the pool, or down the track. It's also for girls who aren't sporty at all, but love stories of courage, perseverance, sass, doggedness, and fun. And don't forget the boys, who will be riveted by these rollicking tales and who need to see that girl power has been alive and well for many years, and is alive and well today."
- Caroline Paul, author of The Gutsy Girl

"Rachel Ignotofsky's delightful book renders the healthy pleasure of sports for girls and women in buoyant color and form—from Bloomer Girls to Skate Bettys, in calf length skirts or disguised as men—reminding us that no matter if you are nine or ninety-eight, the question to ask is, 'What is my next victory?'"
- Mina Samuels, author of Run Like a Girl

"What an inspiring book! These beautifully drawn portraits cover the triumphs and troubles of fifty athletes—some you've heard of and many you haven't. There's a familiar pattern to these stories: A woman sets her mind on something, someone tells her it can't be done, and she goes ahead and does it anyway, setting records along the way. You'll cheer for these ladies, and for author Rachel Ignotofsky."
- Lisa Taggart, author of Women Who Win