Showing results by publisher "Recorded Books" in Sports & Outdoors

Eddie "Air" Ball wants to win the Finkle Foods poetry contest for a chance to sink a million-dollar free throw at halftime of the NBA finals. He knows he can make the shot, no problem. He's not so sure he can write a winning poem, though. Luckily, Eddie has the help of his best friend, Annie "Oakley" Stokely. Not only is Annie as good at shooting baskets as Eddie is, she also knows a lot about writing poems.

Trendsetter is a horse destined to fly—in more ways than one. Sarah is a horse-loving seventh grader who has a secret and a fear of losing the one thing she loves most in the world. Separated by an ocean, a horse and a girl’s parallel struggles to be their best include lots of luck and grit, some stubbornness, and a few failures. It is only when they find each other that the two kindred spirits find themselves. Together they learn that what’s important in life isn’t greatness—it’s being great at being you. 

Different sports. Different backgrounds. Different barriers to break. One thing in common: they got there first … fearlessly. Hear about more than 50 athletes who took risks, overcame the odds, and changed the rules. From historical figures to modern trailblazers, these athletes never gave up, wouldn’t take no for an answer, and transformed the world of sports forever.

The great news: The prize is $1 million! With it, 13-year-old Whisper Nelson could buy jewelry, clothes, and pay for college. She could even send her sister to college! To win, she must kick a goal past a professional soccer player. The bad news: She hates sports - all sports - with a passion! After her infamous soccer goal four years ago, to the other team's advantage, Whisper vowed to never play sports again.

Cheryl loves horses. She’s been studying thoroughbreds at her family’s horse racing stables since she was old enough to ride on the shoulders of her father, a famous horse trainer. Cheryl wants to be a jockey. One problem—she is a girl, and there has never been a Black female jockey in history! Jetolara is a young thoroughbred finding his place in the herd. When Cheryl literally falls onto his back, and Jeto sprints off across the pasture, Cheryl discovers that she doesn’t just want to be a jockey, she is a jockey—and she and Jeto were born to race. 

You gotta know the rules to play the game. Ball is life. Take it to the hoop. Soar. What can we imagine for ourselves? What if we were the star players, moving and grooving through the game of life? What if we had our own rules of the game to help us get what we want, what we aspire to, what will enrich our lives? The Playbook is intended to provide inspiration for kids ages 10 and up to help them succeed on and off the court.

Conozcan a Fernando Valenzuela, el lanzador de los Dodgers que se convirtió en un símbolo del orgullo mexicano, en este libro de béisbol en español para niños de 7 a 10 años. Meet LA Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, the rookie who became a symbol of Mexican American pride, in this Spanish-language baseball book for kids ages 7-10. Fernando Valenzuela era un adolescente cuando llegó a Estados Unidos desde México para jugar con los Dodgers de Los Ángeles. En los años 80, la población mexicoestadounidense de Los Ángeles rara vez seguía el béisbol.

Meet LA Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, the rookie who became a symbol of Mexican American pride and a hero to Latinos everywhere. Celebrate Latino sports history in this inspiring, stunningly illustrated baseball book for kids ages 7-10, from an award-winning baseball reporter and a Pura Belpré Honoree. Fernando Valenzuela was just barely out of his teens when he came to America from Mexico to play for the Los Angeles Dodgers. In the 1980s, Mexican Americans rarely followed baseball. But after Fernando pitched eight winning games, the entire country was talking about him.

As a boy, Kenichi “Zeni” Zenimura dreams of playing professional baseball, but everyone tells him he is too small. Yet he grows up to be a successful player, playing with Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig! When the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor in 1941, Zeni and his family are sent to one of ten internment camps where more than 110,000 people of Japanese ancestry are imprisoned without trials. Zeni brings the game of baseball to the camp, along with a sense of hope. This true story, set in a Japanese internment camp, introduces children to a little-discussed part of American history.

Negro league baseball players didn’t always get the respect that major leaguers received. And yet many - including Jackie Robinson, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, and Roy Campanella - quickly became standouts in the major leagues after 1947. Others didn’t get to prove their mettle in the majors at all - or not until long past their prime. New York Times best-selling author Carole Boston Weatherford compiles an enthralling summary of Negro league history that includes fascinating tidbits about prominent pitchers, hitters, utility players, teams, and traditions.

A team of scientists works to expose athletes who use banned drugs to win Olympic medals. Here is the true, inside story of the UCLA Olympic Laboratory - the drug-detection team that tests athletes for banned performance-enhancing drugs. The scientists worked long nights to detect a new, never-before-tested performance-enhancing drug called NESP (novel erythropoietic stimulating protein) during the 19th Winter Olympics (2002) in Salt Lake City, Utah. The group's work exposed three NESP users among the winning cross-country skiers.

Suzanna and her father, Peter, head to Andros Island, a diving paradise in the Caribbean. There, she learns the basics of scuba diving and eventually swims with fifteen reef sharks in this lively true underwater adventure.

In 1911, three men were in the final round of the famed Pendleton Round-Up. One was white, one was Indian, and one was black. When the judges declared the white man the winner, the audience was outraged. They named black cowboy George Fletcher the "people's champion" and took up a collection, ultimately giving Fletcher far more than the value of the prize that went to the official winner. Award-winning author Vaunda Micheaux Nelson tells the story of Fletcher's triumph with a western flair that will delight kids - and adults - who love true stories, unlikely heroes, and cowboy tales.

Growing up, Wat Misaka wasn’t the tallest kid on the basketball court, but he was fast and he loved the game! In his Japanese American basketball league, Wat dribbled with speed and shared the ball as much as he scored. Encouraged by his father to always do his best, Wat applied this mindset to every challenge in his life. As Wat spent more time on the court, his passion for the game grew. He played in college at the University of Utah during WWII, a time when many Japanese Americans were stripped of their freedoms and incarcerated by the US government. 

Marcenia “TOMBOY” Stone loved nothing more than baseball. But her parents wanted her to twirl in ice skates, not steal bases in cleats. When their local priest convinced Tomboy’s parents she could play for the church team, she got her chance! Her coaches and teammates made her feel unwelcome because she was Black and a girl. But unstoppable Tomboy ignored their taunts, learned the rule book better than her teammates, and scored runs. When Tomboy grew up, she changed her name to Toni, and her passion for baseball never faded.

Roberto Clemente always loved baseball. Growing up in Carolina, Puerto Rico, he swung tree branches (since he didn’t have a bat) and hit tin cans. He was always batting, pitching, running, sliding. His dedication paid off when, at the age of 19, he was tapped for a major league team. First stop: chilly Montreal . . . where he warmed the bench and himself, longing to play baseball. Months later, he finally got his chance with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Katie Sandwina was the strongest woman the world had ever seen. In her circus performances, she bent steel bars, broke chains, and carried a cannon! She could lift men with one hand and twirl them around! In an era when “proper ladies” were expected to be helpless and frail, Katie showed everyone that women could be powerful. She also spoke up for women’s equality and the right to vote.