Pastimes and Passions
Staff -- School Library Journal, 3/1/1998
We Americans take our myriad leisure activities very seriously. The arena of sports can run the gamut from good-natured fun to highly focused training and competition. The titles below, culled from previous years' Best Books, look at a variety of characters who engage in a variety of single-minded pursuits -- on the field, in the field, and excursions to the "field of dreams." -- LT
AGEE, John. The Return of Freddy LeGrand. illus. by author. Farrar. Tr $15. ISBN 0-374-36249-1; pap. $4.95. ISBN 0-374-46230-5.
Gr 1-3 -- The daring escapades of an unflappable flier who crashes into a French farmyard and charms the owners, Sophie and Albert, who take him under their wing again when he is stranded in the Alps. A deadpan delivery, balanced by droll, stylized illustration. (Nov. 1992)
AVI. "Who Was That Masked Man, Anyway?" (Richard Jackson Bks.). Orchard. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-531-05457-8; PLB $16.99. ISBN 0-531-08607-0; Avon. pap. $3.99. ISBN 0-380-72113-9.
Gr 4-6 -- It's 1945, and when Frankie isn't re-enacting his favorite radio dramas, he's spying on a "mad scientist" who has rented a room in his parents' house. Touching, funny, and totally original, the story is told completely through dialogue and excerpts from old programs. (Oct. 1992)
BLAKE, Robert J. Akiak: A Tale from the Iditarod. illus. by author. Philomel. PLB $15.95. ISBN 0-399-22798-9.
K-Gr 3 -- Left behind because of an injury, a lead husky sets out on her own to find her team and win the race. An action-packed tale of daring, determination, and dedication. (Sept. 1997)
BROWN, Don. Alice Ramsey's Grand Adventure. illus. by author. Houghton. Tr $15. ISBN 0-395-70127-9.
K-Gr 3 -- A true tale with engaging art that stars a heroine with persistence and practical know-how. Overcoming steep mountains and mechanical breakdowns, Ramsey became the first woman to motor across the country. (Sept. 1997)
BROWNE, Anthony. Willy the Wizard. illus. by author. Knopf. Tr $15. ISBN 0-679-87644-8; PLB $16.99. ISBN 0-679-97644-2.
PreS-Gr 3 -- A young chimp learns that soccer stardom has more to do with ability than with rituals or special boots. A slam-bang plot with knock-out artwork. (Feb. 1996)
BURLEIGH, Robert. Hoops. illus. by Stephen T. Johnson. Harcourt/Silver Whistle. RTE $16. ISBN 0-15-201450-0.
Gr 2 Up -- A handful of kids, a neighborhood court, and a ball are the elements that spring explosively to life in this ode to the game that captures the energy, the elation, the sheer poetry of basketball. (Nov. 1997)
CRUTCHER, Chris. Athletic Shorts: Six Short Stories. Greenwillow. RTE $14. ISBN 0-688-10816-4; Bantam. pap. $3.99. ISBN 0-440-21390-8.
Gr 8 Up -- The stereotype of jocks as insensitive dullards is challenged in stories that grapple with the big questions of life as well as with athletic prowess, told with good-natured aplomb and gritty honesty. (Sept. 1991)
CRUTCHER, Chris. Ironman. Greenwillow. RTE $15. ISBN 0-688-13503-X; Bantam. pap. $4.50. ISBN 0-440-21971-X.
Gr 9 Up -- Although slow to accept his placement in an anger-management class, triathlete Bo Brewster learns to control and develop his emotional strength. Powerful, perceptive, and wickedly funny. (Mar. 1995)
CRUTCHER, Chris. Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes. Greenwillow. RTE $15. ISBN 0-688-11552-7; Dell. pap. $4.50. ISBN 0-440-21906-X.
Gr 8 Up -- An obese boy and a disfigured girl suffer the emotional scars of years of mockery at the hands of their peers. They share a hard-boiled view of the world until events in their senior year hurl them in very different directions. A story about a friendship with staying power, written with pathos and pointed humor. (Mar. 1993)
DUGAN, Barbara. Loop the Loop. illus. by James Stevenson. Greenwillow. Tr $15. ISBN 0-688-09647-6; PLB $14.93. ISBN 0-688-09648-4; Puffin. pap. $4.99. ISBN 0-14-054904-8.
Gr 2-4 -- Anne learns many things from her elderly neighbor, including the fine art of yo-yoing. When the old woman is no longer capable of living on her own, the youngster proves to be a true friend. A rewarding, humorous intergenerational story that affirms the value of each individual. (May 1992)
FOREMAN, Michael. Seal Surfer. illus. by author. Harcourt. Tr $16. ISBN 0-15-201399-7.
K-Gr 4 -- A special bond develops between a boy and a seal pup through the years. From storm-tossed winter waves to quiet harbor nights, dramatic watercolors capture the changing moods of the sea. (March 1997)
KLASS, David. California Blue. Scholastic. Tr $13.95. ISBN 0-590-46688-7; pap. $3.99. ISBN 0-590-46689-5.
Gr 8 Up -- A 17-year-old loner with a passion for nature discovers a new species of butterfly in the old-growth forest near his home and is thrust headlong into the battle between environmentalists and the timber industry. A gripping story of a young man holding on to personal convictions in spite of family and community pressure. (April 1994)
KRULL, Kathleen. Wilma Unlimited: How Wilma Rudolph Became the World's Fastest Woman. illus. by David Diaz. Harcourt. RTE $16. ISBN 0-15-201267-2.
K-Gr 5 -- An athlete's determined efforts to succeed against all odds. The dynamic artwork is as fluid and vivacious as Rudolph herself. (June 1996)
LEWIN, Ted. I Was a Teenage Professional Wrestler. illus. by author. (Richard Jackson Bks.). Orchard. Tr $18.95. ISBN 0-531-05477-2; PLB $19.99. ISBN 0-531-08627-5; Hyperion. pap. $6.95. ISBN 0-7868-1009-2.
Gr 6 Up -- The world of 1950's professional wrestling altered though an artistic participant's eye. This affectionate, animated memoir of a struggling art student's unusual part-time job is part autobiography, part family scrapbook, and part portfolio, forming a surprisingly disarming whole. (July 1993)
LYNCH, Chris. Shadow Boxer. HarperCollins. pap. $4.50. ISBN 0-06-447112-8.
Gr 7 Up -- George, 14, struggles with the increasingly difficult responsibility of guiding and protecting his younger brother, who wants only to live his own life. A realistic inner-city setting, gripping situations, and courageous characters. (Sept. 1993)
MACY, Sue. A Whole New Ball Game: The Story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Holt. Tr $14.95. ISBN 0-8050-1942-1; Puffin. pap. $4.99. ISBN 0-14-037423-X.
Gr 5 Up -- As much a social history of the postwar era as a chronicle of women in baseball, this lively, informative title -- supported by interesting photos and appendixes -- is in a league all its own. (May 1993)
MACY, Sue. Winning Ways: A Photohistory of American Women in Sports. Holt. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-8050-4147-8.
Gr 6-10 -- A look at 150 years of women in sports: what they wore, how they behaved, and how they were regarded, served up via engaging anecdotes and winning photos. (Aug. 1996)
NOVAK, Matt. Mouse TV. illus. by author. (Richard Jackson Bks.). Orchard. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-531-06856-0; PLB $16.99. ISBN 0-531-08706-9.
PreS-Gr 2 -- Comedy, science, history, or mystery -- each member of the mouse family has a different TV favorite. But when the screen goes blank, the ingenious rodents discover the fun of doing rather than watching. Intricate cartoon panels of the shows they watch and the activities they engage in offer lingering viewing pleasure. (Oct. 1994)
PAULSEN, Gary. The Voyage of the Frog. Orchard. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-531-05805-0; Dell. pap. $3.99. ISBN 0-440-40364-2.
Gr 6-9 -- A taut survival story of a 14-year-old boy -- grieving over his uncle's recent death -- caught at sea in a small sailboat and pushed by a storm 350 miles from home. Paulsen's spare prose offers an affecting blend of the boy's inner thoughts and keen observations of the power of nature to destroy and to heal. (Jan. 1989)
PAULSEN, Gary. Woodsong. illus. by Ruth Wright Paulsen. Bradbury. PLB $15. ISBN 0-02-770221-9; Puffin. pap. $4.99. ISBN 0-14-034905-7.
Gr 6 Up -- Natural phenomena, chilling experiences, and exhilarating adventure are all part of Paulsen's personal recollections of his induction into sled-dog training and racing. Fluent, spare memoirs of one man's initiation, education, and unabashed awe of the wilderness and its inhabitants. (Oct. 1990)SNYDER, Zilpha Keatley. Cat Running. Delacorte. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-385-31056-0; Dell. pap. $3.99. ISBN 0-440-41152-1.
Gr 4-7 -- A solitary girl joins forces with a boy who is ostracized because his family are "Okies," racing for medical help against weather elements, prejudice, and time when his little sister is stricken with pneumonia. Expertly paced, with a vivid sense of life during the Great Depression. (Nov. 1994)
TEAGUE, Mark. The Field Beyond the Outfield. Scholastic. RTE $14.95. ISBN 0-590-45173-1; pap. $4.95. ISBN 0-590-45174-X.
K-Gr 4 -- As Ludlow Grebe takes to the outfield for the Oswald County Hornets, he's thinking intently about the game -- the game with the giant insects that's going on in his mind's eye. This pint-sized Walter Mitty exercises his overactive imagination with outlandish results. (June 1992)
VAIL, Rachel. Daring To Be Abigail. Orchard/Jackson. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-531-09517-7; PLB $16.99. ISBN 0-531-08867-7.
Gr 4-6 -- Insecure Abby arrives at summer camp determined to emerge a new person, and in the process discovers aspects of a self worth keeping. A novel tempered with humor and honest emotion. (Mar. 1996)
