Kid Athletes: True Tales of Childhood from Sports Legends

Kid Legends

by David Stabler, Doogie Horner (Illustrator)

Hilarious childhood biographies and full-color illustrations show how Tiger Woods, Gabby Douglas, Bruce Lee, Billie Jean King, and other budding sports champions faced kid-sized challenges growing up.
 
Forget the gold medals, the championships, and the undefeated seasons. When all-star athletes were growing up, they had regular-kid problems just like you. Baseball legend Babe Ruth was such a troublemaker, his family sent him to reform school. Race car champion Danica Patrick fended off bullies who told her “girls can’t drive.” And football superstar Peyton Manning was forced to dance the tango in his school play. 

Kid Athletes  tells all of their stories and more with full-color cartoon illustrations on every page. Other subjects include Billie Jean King, Jackie Robinson, Yao Ming, Gabby Douglas, Tiger Woods, Julie Krone, Bruce Lee, Muhammad Ali, Bobby Orr, Lionel Messi, and more!

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports, Middle Grade, Biography, Childrens, Chapter Books, Juvenile

208 pages, Hardcover

First published November 17, 2015

Reviews

[Erin *Proud Book Hoarder* · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book teaches kids that some of the heroes of sports weren't held back by their humble, oppressive beginnings.

Written geared toward children, obviously, but being clueless about sports, I didn't know any of this. The author took well known athletes and showed their upbringing and struggles to get to the top. Babe Ruth opens the book, and perhaps had the most heartbreaking story. He and the next, Jackie Robinson, both showed that having one person in their corner made all the difference in turning their lives around, redirecting their negative energies into positive things, and turning mentors into heroes. The wife of Babe Ruth ends his chapter with these wise words that sums it up: "When Babe Ruth was twenty-three, the world loved him," she said. "When he was thirteen, only Brother Matthias loved him." With Jackie, so much animosity was overcome because of racism, his pastor helped a lot of the kids.

The third story is on the tennis star, Billie Jean King, who had remarkable determination despite poverty, racism, and her parents being the only backers in her corner until later. Peyton Manning was a strange story because it was the only one did that not showcase what he grew up to do, instead talking about a struggle with dancing in front of everyone at a play. Danica Patrick was covered with being fearless and racing...fast, but I didn't feel the same empathy with her.

The second section was called family matters, focusing on Bobby Orr, Michael Jordan (he WAS clumsy), Tiger Woods, who was a prodigy from the start, Yao Ming, and Gabrielle Douglas.

Finally the third section is on Practice makes perfect, opening with Babe Didrikson Zaharrias (what a remarkable girl and woman!), Bruce Lee (had no idea he was such a troublemaker and rough), Mahammad Ali, Jesse Kuhaula, Julie Krone and the Marvelous Mischievious Pony (this was an endearing story about a pony more than the sports star) and ends with Lionel Messi.

A lot of these stories have poverty and setbacks as a shared bond, with determination and having that special person in your corner being the instigator for success. It's inspiring for kids, especially those who want to delve into sports. There are cute illustrations, some of them cleverly humorous, to help the book along. There are no actual pictures of the sport stars themselves.

[Liviania · Rating 4 out of 5]

The duo behind KID PRESIDENTS is back with KID ATHLETES. One great thing about them moving into sports is that they can highlight a diverse range of inspirational people. As great as the presidents are, only one of them isn't a white man. The people chosen for KID ATHLETES range from reigning gymnastics Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas to sumo legend Jesse Kuhaulua (Takamiyama Daigoro). There's a nice blend of current competitors and historical figures as well as a variety of sports represented.

The stories are kept short and simple. I wasn't familiar with any of them, but I'm not a sports fan. I found Jackie Robinson's childhood particularly interesting. Each chapter ends with some career highlights, so I was sad that Billie Jean King's didn't mention the Battle of the Sexes. Doogie Horner's sketch-like illustrations add a huge amount of appeal to KID ATHLETES. They're very cute and give the book a personality beyond biography for kids.

I think KID ATHLETES would make a fantastic gift for any child interested in sports. Not surprising, since Quirk Books has the books-that-make-great-gifts market cornered. The biographies presents aren't particularly special, but the figures highlighted are truly interesting people and the presentation hits the sweet spot between bright and adorable.

I passed my copy onto my niece, who is in the second grade, because I thought she might enjoy it. She's pretty athletic herself and does competitive dance. She's been reading one biography a night and has one left to go. When I took her out for breakfast this Sunday, she was excited to tell me how much she was enjoying the book. She's also been reading parts of it out loud to my nephew, who is in Kindergarten and was MVP of his touch football team. He likes it too! There's definitely a range of appeal.

[Kayra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dünyaca tanınan ünlü sporcuların gerçek çocukluk hikayeleri. Kitapta sporcular hakkında hiç bilmediğim bilgilerin yanında konu ile ilgili resimler sayesinde çok iyi anladım. Herkese tavsiye ediyorum.

[Lily Weinstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so GOOD!!!!!!!!

[Joshua · Rating 5 out of 5]

very educational

[Emily]

AWESOMENESS

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

Recommended for: Grades 5+

Pairs well with: Other nonfiction anthologies for upper elementary/middle grades, like What on Earth?: 100 of Our Planet's Most Amazing New Species

Booktalk:

You know who Babe Ruth is. You know how Tiger Woods is. You know how Yao Ming is. You know who Peyton Manning is.

This book tells you about what these famous athletes from the past century were like when they were your age. And they were a lot more like you than you may imagine.

Some of them (Michael Jordan) were rivals with their older siblings.

Others (Billie Jean King) had parents who couldn't afford to send them to sports competitions.

Others got bullied by their peer athletes, and one black gymnast was even called "slave" by her fellow gymnasts.

If you want a fast non-fiction book where you can learn about a lot of different athletes in a short amount of time, this would be a great choice for you.

Review:

I love books that challenge traditional kid assumptions that nonfiction must be boring, long, and confusing. Not only is this book relatively short, but it also teaches students crucial skills in learning how to navigate a nonfiction text... for example, students could decide to read the book front to back or they could decide to skip around a little bit if they wanted to read about certain athletes. In addition, the illustrations are sweet and are plentiful enough so that they truly aid comprehension for struggling readers.

Not all stories in this volume are created equal, however, and while some vignettes are richly detailed, funny, and well-structured, others fall a bit flat.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Thoughts:

This is interesting. I never would have guessed what some athletes did when they were children. This is great for kids who are sports fans.

Do you know that Michael Jackson was electrocuted as a child? Or that Gabby Douglas would would use couches and chairs as springboard to spring herself into the air when she was just a toddler? If you want to know more things like this about famous athletes, this book is for you.

There are also cartoon like illustrated graphics that help to break up the story so that it doesn't look to be overwhelming for a younger reader.

Recommendation:

Recommended for readers in grades 4 thru 7.

[Carla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many people look up to sports stars, especially kids. Unfortunately, they are not all worthy of the hero designation, but the athletes in this book all overcame situations in their lives (particularly their childhood) to become the famous athlete they are recognized as being. David Stabler introduced us to well-known athletes and described their upbringing and struggles to get to the top. Both male and female athletes were highlighted and a variety of sports. Some of the issues they dealt with included racism, sexism, being sent to reform school as a child, being involved in a serious accident that resulted in serious physical damage and even lack of funds to participate in sports. Helping to overcome the odds the athletes usually had one person in their corner that made all the difference in turning their lives around, redirecting their negative energies into positive things, and turning mentors into heroes. if it wasn't a single person, it was family that pushed many athletes to do their best and overcome clumsiness or other issues. The last section in the book dealt with athletes who persevered and practised over and over to develop their skills. I enjoyed the stories and learned about some of the athletes that I knew and some I did not. This book would be inspirational to kids who have situations to deal with in their lives that might be roadblocks to their success. The old adage of practice makes perfect is definitely demonstrated in this book. The illustrations are not photographs, but cute, cartoonish pictures that help to add some humour to the story. This would be a great addition to a school library.

[Jane Maple · Rating 4 out of 5]

Includes a lot of interesting facts about athlete's growing up.
1) Babe Ruth (who went by Little George as a kid since his real name was George Herman Ruth Jr.) grew up in Baltimore over a bar. He misbehaved (his own parents called him "incorrigible" and therefore he was sent to St. Mary's Industrial School for Orphans, Delinquent, Incorrigible, and Wayward Boys. His parents didn't come and visit him at the boarding school. It was at this school that he met Brother Matthias who encouraged Little George's talent in baseball and Matthias also arranged for George's tryout with a local semi-professional team. George signed a contract to play baseball at 19. Five years later, Babe Ruth raised money for his former school when it was damaged by a fire. In speaking of Brother Mathias, Babe Ruth's wife said "When Babe Ruth was twenty-tree, the world loved him. When he was thirteen, only Brother Matthias loved him."
2) Jackie Robinson's father left the family when Jackie was just six months old. His mother worked as a maid and since she couldn't pay anyone to watch Jackie she had Jackie's sister Willa Mae place Jackie in the sandbox before she went into kindergarten and she would look out the window. Jackie joined the Pepper Street Gang with African American, Mexican American and Japanese American boys frustrated at the discrimination in their neighborhood. The would steal golf balls off the local golf course and sell them back to the golfers. A minster named Karl Downs gave the boys work and access to his fridge. It changed Jackie who volunteered at Rev Downs' church
Boys

[LUCIANA FIGUEROA · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would give the book Kid Athletes a solid 5/5, I think this book is really descriptive and I like the way they can keep each story interesting and deep but short at the same time. This book is about the story of many athletes, what they have had to overcome and more. The book has a total of 16 stories of different heroes. My personal favorite would be the one of Micheal Jordan. I especially loved the way the author was able to narrate that story so descriptively. I loved that each story had a different meaning. I think this book relates to my hero's journey because in each story they tell you about each hero's struggles and how they were able to overcome them. I was able to identify myself and see that each time I fail I can get back up. I would say this book did change me as a reader, now I feel more inspired to read, and I feel like I finally found something that I like to read. I would recommend this book to Xime, I think she would like it.

[San Diego Book Review · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviewed by Hannah Hom for San Diego Book Review

A lot of kids like sports and know about current sports stars but they don’t know that much about important sports figures of the past. "Kid Athletes" by David Stabler introduces readers to 16 stars in a lot of different sports, not just football, basketball, and baseball. Included are people like Babe Ruth, Bruce Lee, Muhammad Ali, Bobby Orr, Michael Jordan, and Danica Patrick.

You can read this entire review and others like it at San Diego Book Review.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 - this was rlly fun!! almost every story was interesting and lead me on to further research. the humor in the cute little illustrations was the cherry on top. I only wish they had added a few real life photographs to the end of each chapter (and completely omitted Julie Krone. I don’t believe in “sports” that require any sort of animal participation* and I felt distraught that she’d ever be ok with selling her horse in the first place, especially after using him.) overall, an enjoyable read for anyone, even those who don’t necessarily enjoy sports. I will be picking up other books in this series.

*Using animals in sports and entertainment is an abuse of our position of responsibility and brutalises society towards animals and nature.

[Sean McGurr · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review was written by my 10-year-old daughter: I like this book because it has all different people, and there short biographies. It's more than 100 pages, so I can read it for school. It says how they got into the sports and other things about their childhood, like where they grew up and about their family. I learned a lot about all different athletes. My favorite in the book is Babe Ruth. This is a good book for kids.

Dad added: My daughter enjoyed the Kid Presidents book also. Between the brief biographies and illustrations, these books are great for the primary school student.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is a book that lots of kids in my third grade classroom will enjoy. The author made some interesting choices when he selected the athletes for each section. Some are very well known, while others are not. Some are will be known to grandparents and some will be known to present readers. The thing, Stabler reminds us, they all have in common is that they were once kids with parents and siblings and obstacles to overcome. It is interesting to read how each of them was determined to achieve their dreams.

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This giant collection of amazing kid athletes was fun to read and had cool illustrations so I give it a 3 star rating. I did like it and learning about all of those different people was interesting. There were some athletes I knew of, some I had no clue of, and some that I didn't realize they rose to fame so young. This book is definitely best for middle school students because it is longer and that age may be more seriously interested in specific athletes or sports. This could be used as a research book or just for fun. It could possibly get a reluctant reader enticed enough to open up too.

[Gail Sacharski · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book in the series features the childhood stories of kids who became fanous athletes. It covers a variety of sports--Muhammad Ali & boxing, Peyton Manning & football, Julie Krone & horse racing, Babe Ruth & baseball, Lionel Messi & soccer, Tiger Woods & golf, Babe Didriksen & just about every sport & many others. There are a lot of fun facts & information that show that even if there are obstacles & setbacks, you can succeed if you have the determination. Good book.

[Anna Virginia]

This book is a fun chapter book for older or middle school students to read as they can connect to the various sports players in the stories.

It's a book full of true stories about the childhood of many famous athletes, men and women alike. This would be a great book for children who are aspiring athletes to read.

[Abby]

This book is a good chapter book for older or middle school children to read because they can interact with the various sports stars in the books.

It's a book full of fascinating tales from the upbringing of many successful athletes, both men and women. It will be a perfect book for children who are learning to read.

[Zosma Leonis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although a little too inspirational for my tastes, these vignettes about the childhoods of famous athletes are also interesting stories about the families and educations of the athletes. Young sports fans will enjoy learning more about their heroes, and the short format of each story will also appeal to reluctant readers.

[Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like reading about how good the athletes are and finding out things about their childhood. Lots of the athletes had interesting things about them. My favorite athletes were Peyton Manning, Danica Patrick, and the sumo wrestler Jesse Kuhaulua.

[Gina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love hearing about the athlete's childhood. It was a great summary. I am not a sports person, but I wanted to listen to this anyway. I learned so much. This book is very inspiring for kids who want to be athletes and others to pursue their dream.

[R Waterfall · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stories of athletes in this book is inspiring and I enjoyed this book. Written in an engaging, comical way, this book taught me a lot about athletes such as Gabby Douglas, Lionel Messi, and others. :)

[Yunhan · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you see athletes on TV, it doesn't look like they were once kids, but they were! This book tells you all about how athletes learned important lessons from when they were children and interesting events in their lives. This book is really interesting!

[Ashima · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was one of the best tales i've read. -anisa
me too! - anya

[wildct2003 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining read.

[Mia!]

fhgfv

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had very cute illustrations and storyline highlighting the obstacles and passion of the athletes during their childhood behind their accomplishments.

[Zachary T · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading all the stories of the athletes in this book!! It was very interesting to read stories about them before they became famous!

[Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
[Messi]