We Got Game!: 35 Female Athletes Who Changed the World

by Aileen Weintraub, Sarah Green (Illustrator)

A Mighty Girl's Best Book of the Year!

Inspire kids to be their best selves and get involved in social change with this stunning anthology about thirty-five amazing women in sports around the world and throughout history.

Do you play sports? Maybe you dream about scoring a goal on the soccer field or hitting a home run in baseball. Perhaps you're thinking about trying a new sport, but you're still not sure.

In We Got Game! you'll meet thirty-five female athletes who played hard, broke records, and inspired girls around the world. Some of these athletes have retired. Others are still competing. But they have one thing in they all got game! You'll read about the first woman horse jockey to compete in the Kentucky Derby, the number one tennis player in the world, a surfer who lost her arm in a shark attack, and a snow boarder who landed a death-defying jump, along with many others. These female athletes prove that girls can do anything!

Simone Biles * Gretchen Bleiler * Hannah Cockroft * Misty Copeland * Diane Crump * Sasha DiGiulian * Gabby Douglas * Grete Eliassen * Marlen Esparza * Lisa Fernandez * Althea Gibson * Bethany Hamilton * Mia Hamm * Jackie Joyner-Kersee * Billie Jean King * Phaidra Knight * Silken Laumann * Nancy Lopez * Tatyana McFadden * Ibtihaj Mohammad * Danica Patrick * Megan Rapinoe * Mary Lou Retton * Manon Rhéaume * Ronda Rousey * Wilma Rudolph * Junko Tabei * Dara Torres * Elana Myers Taylor * Marianne Vos * Abby Wambach * Maria Toorpakai Wazir * Jen Welter * Serena Williams * Kristi Yamaguchi

Genres: Sports, Nonfiction, Biography, Middle Grade

128 pages, Hardcover

First published May 4, 2021

About the author

Aileen Weintraub is an award-winning author, journalist, and editor. She has written for the Washington Post, Glamour, NBC, and AARP, among others. She has also published several children’s books, including Never Too Young! 50 Unstoppable Kids Who Made a Difference and We Got Game! 35 Female Athletes Who Changed the World.

Reviews

[Diana Whitney · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book for middle-grade readers is full of lively illustrations, inspiring stories and cool facts. The athletes featured include some of my personal heroes: Simone Biles, Megan Rapinoe, Serena Williams, and Jackie Joyner-Kersee.

I also loved learning the stories of athletes I didn’t know, like elite wheelchair racer Hannah Cockroft, Kentucky Derby jockey Diane Krump, and flyweight boxer Marlen Esparza. I wish I could’ve read We Got Game to my girls when they were younger.

But please don’t mistake this for a girls-only book. The inspiring collection is for kids of all genders, offering them a sense of possibility and awe.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Featuring 35 women who were groundbreakers in their particular sports or set records in some way, this volume pays tribute to these individuals who have made or are making a difference in how certain activities are regarded by the general public. Thus, their examples might inspire girls today to decide that a sport that has been traditionally regarded as the purview of males might give that sport a try. Each athlete is profiled with one page of text, a full-page color illustration, and a page listing her "Amazing Facts and Unbelievable Stats." While I enjoyed having this collection of athletic women, I would have liked to have known more about how the author selected the individuals she included. Additionally, each athlete seems to have chosen some sort of cause or activity that centered her as an activist in some way, which was a good idea since that made her seem to be a leader off the field and court as well as on the field. But sometimes that activism didn't seem to go very far or be described very much. I'd have liked to know more. Still, this is a good starting place to learn about females who broke barriers in athletics and excelled in their own way.

[Rochelle Melander · Rating 5 out of 5]

This anthology celebrates the lives and achievements of 35 female athletes who have made a difference in sports and life! Weintraub’s narrative will give readers chills as they read story after story of young women who have broken through barriers to compete at the sports they love. Young readers will be inspired to learn that these women have lent their hands, voices, and platforms to make sure other women have the same opportunity. Every profile is accompanied by a beautiful portrait by illustrator Sarah Green and an “Amazing Stats and Unbelievable Facts” page that children will devour. The book ends with a rousing tribute to the reader—and their ability to make a difference!

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

The women highlighted in this list display a broad mix of sports, nationalities, races, and ethnicity. The reader sees that athletic people have a drive and passion to participate in sports no matter where they live or what gender they are. The women in this book have accomplished truly remarkable things against great odds and it was inspiring to read their stories. And it was just as inspiring to learn about their work outside of sports as community activists, philanthropists, and mentors.

Young athletes will enjoy reading about these superstars and We Got Game would make an excellent addition to any library, especially classroom libraries.

[Sandy Brehl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many plusses to this compilation of female sports figure profiles:
Consistent formatting makes extensive information accessible and retrievable.
Back matter sources and index, as well as table of contents, make this an except "dip and dive" resource for specific sports figures, although it also reads well from start to finish.
The election of female sports leaders is diverse in eras, ethnicities, challenges overcome, ages, cultural and geographic origins, and actual sports considered.
The book design itself presents expository narratives, appealing illustrations, impressive factoids, and details that may be new, even for those individuals who are widely known and currently "famous."

[Leigh Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know who loves this book more, me or my kids. It's such a joyous celebration of an incredible cross-section of athletes, beautifully presented. I have 3 daughters who all went in different directions when it came to sports (field hockey, tennis, volleyball, lacrosse, crew) and it's so exciting to have a book featuring top performers from such a wide variety of sports. I needed a birthday gift for an athletic 11 year old boy who likes biographies, and this was a great choice. This is a happy book, a celebration of women loving the game (whichever one it is) and exceeding all expectations!

[Lisa Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic book. Though the number of girls in sports has increased dramatically since title IX was passed, girls still drop out of sports at very high rates, and those rates increase at puberty. At the same time, so much research shows the importance of girls playing sports to build confidence and communication skills. This book will help kids of all sexes and gender identities appreciate and support girls in sports. It may be about girls, but it is not just for girls.

[Allison Lane · Rating 5 out of 5]

a gem of a concept, highly loved by my daughter! First, my 10yo daughter devours every bio of girls and women. Thank you to the author for writing this book. We need more of them in the world. A lot more. Second, my daughter LOVED this book. The cover encapsulated her energy and how she feels about sports. And that soccer ball, totally clinched the deal. My girl is a soccer devotee. Highly recommend.

[Greg Payan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great cross-section of female athlete profiles across many sports, including even those not traditionally seen as 'athletes' like Misty Copeland the ballerina. Also does not neglect to include early pioneers such as Althea Gibson in track. Beautiful presentation with colorful illustrations throughout. Highly recommended for boys and girls alike.

[Ronni Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I read this book when I was younger so I could have seen other females who overcame struggles to be great at what they do and inspire others. The book was so well done, covering women in not only famous sports but the more obscure ones as well. You don't even need to like sports to find this book inspiring. Well done!

[Tina Barry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Upbeat in tone and inspiring, We Got Game! is the kind of book to empower young sports enthusiasts of any gender. I can't wait to share it with my granddaughter.

[Suzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Olympic fever resulted in my checking out this new JF book and enjoying it. Fast read and easy. Alphabetical and inclusive.

[Ms. Yingling · Rating 3 out of 5]

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus or Netgalley

[Kerrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Empowering and inspiring! My 11-year-old daughters have been loving this gorgeous book.