Read On.Sports: Reading Lists for Every Taste

by Craig Clark, Richard T. Fox

Overview

Organized across appeal features, this comprehensive listing of stories, biographies, and fiction is the first and only guide to sports literature for adult and teen readers.

Sports literature spans multiple genres—from fast-paced adventures, to biographies of sports heroes, to tales of underdogs overcoming the odds among others. Libraries and readers alike can benefit from a resource that organizes fiction and nonfiction titles according to their primary appeal features. This useful reference features reading lists of sports-oriented titles written by talented authors that are cataloged by character, story, setting, mood, and language. The lists are perfect for advising readers, creating thematic reading lists for library websites, and as plans for those who enjoy reading about athletic pursuits. The authors include fascinating notations for books that became films, as well as a resource list of websites and links to articles relating to sports fiction.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781610693578
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	12/16/2013
Series:	Read On Series
Pages:	184
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	1 - 17 Years

About the Author

Craig A. Clark is a member of the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) Collection Development and Evaluation Section (CODES) Reading List committee.

Richard T. Fox was librarian at Cuyahoga County Public Library and Cleveland Public Library, a past member of the RUSA CODES Sophie Brody medal committee for outstanding achievement in Jewish literature, and former chair of the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award for Cleveland Public Library.

Table of Contents

Series Foreword ix

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction xiii

Sports Defined xiv

Criteria for Selection xiv

How to Use This Book xiv

A Note for Librarians xv

Symbols xv

Chapter 1 Character 1

Best of the Best-Great Athletes/Great Writers 1

Outstanding Athletes-Outstanding Autobiographies 3

The Lives of Great Coaches 5

Owners-Titans of the Game 7

One of a Kind-Unique Individuals 9

Sport Families 10

Yer Out!-The Officials 12

These Women Rock 14

Voices of Sport-Announcers 15

Out of the Closet … and into the Spotlight 17

Yo Rocky-Underdogs 19

"I'll Play the Game"-The Sporting Lives of Writers 21

You Are Not Supposed to Be Here-Breakthroughs 23

Politicians and Celebrities 25

Chapter 2 Story 29

Did You See That Game? 29

Greatest Rivalries 32

Game Changers-Reinventing Sport 34

Title IX-Leveling the Playing Field (Almost) 36

Fabulous Firsts and Unbreakable Records 38

Endurance-Highest, Fastest, and Furthest 40

There's a War On (U.S. Wars) 42

Political Underpinnings 44

The Seedier Side of Sports 46

Inside Scoops-Tell-Alls 48

Cheaters Never Win 50

High School Hopes and Dreams 52

Bubble Gum in Every Pack-Collectibles 54

Stay Tuned-Media and Sports 56

The Thrill of Mystery 57

Forgotten, Forlorn, and Misbegotten Teams and Leagues 59

Chapter 3 Setting 63

Fantasy Leagues 63

Off the Beaten Path-Unlikely Pastimes That Pass for Sport 65

It's a Business, Not a Game 67

The Most Dangerous Sports 69

Outdoor Life-Nature and Sport 71

Road Trips-Traveling and Sports 72

Out of This World-Sports in Speculative Fiction 74

The Olympics 75

1936-An Olympic Year 77

Sport amid Chaos 79

Tools of the Trade-Equipment 81

At the Movies-Craig's Favorite Books to Film 83

At the Movies 2-Richard's Favorite Books to Film 85

Chapter 4 Language 89

The Art of the Essay and Article 89

These Guys Are Funny-Humor in Sports 91

Behind the Pen (Keyboard)-Writers' Lives 93

Nonsports Writers Writing about Sports 95

For Literary Enthusiasts-Sports and So Much More 97

Historical Novels of the Game 99

The Fantastic-Novels That Stretch the Imagination 101

Interviews-The Best Questions Asked and Answered 103

Diaries … A Day in the Life 105

The "A" Team-Anthologies 106

Poetry and Other Shorts 108

Playwrights Play Right-Broadway and Sports 110

Chapter 5 Mood 113

Before the Fall 113

…After the Fall 115

Good Advice, Great Coaches 117

Nostalgia-The Good Old Days 118

Fans or Fanatics? 120

Fathers and Sons (and Daughters Too) 122

Remembrance-Lives Cut Short 124

Sports Photography-A Picture Is Worth 126

At What Cost-The Price of Excellence 128

For the Love of the Game (Not the Money) 130

Love and Devotion-Beyond the Games 132

I Can Do Anything You Can Do-Athletes with Disabilities 134

Extraordinary Friendships 135

It's Tebow Time-You Gotta Have Faith 137

The Futility of Being a Cleveland Sports Fan (or How We Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love Defeat and Despair) 139

Sources 143

Index-Titles by Sport 145

Name Index 157

Editorial Reviews

[U]seful for readers' advisory in libraries and will appeal to sports fans, so consider a copy in your circulating collection as well.” —Booklist

“A compilation of well-reviewed, mainstream sports-oriented literature is contained in Read On … Sports. . . . This work will be of interest to sports enthusiasts and support readers' advisory services in public libraries.” —ARBA

From the Publisher