The Fastest Girl on Earth!: Meet Kitty O'Neil, Daredevil Driver!

by Dean Robbins, Elizabeth Baddeley (Illustrator)

Overview

Gear up for this high-powered picture book biography about Kitty O'Neil, the stuntwoman and racecar driver who broke the women's land speed record!

Kitty O'Neil was a force to be reckoned with. She became deaf as a child, and grew up loving sports and action. Kitty jumped, ran, raced, and swam, all while learning to read lips and communicating through sign language. Eventually, Kitty took a job as a stuntwoman, doing the most dangerous job on set and even filming stunts for films like Wonder Woman!

Still, Kitty wanted more thrills. She became a racecar driver and sought to do what no woman had done before. She chose the aptly named Motivator and trained like a true champion. In 1976, Kitty and the Motivator broke the land speed record, racing at over 600 miles per hour! Kitty was a hero to fans everywhere, and proved that she was truly unstoppable.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593125717
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	08/10/2021
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	265,271
Product dimensions:	11.31(w) x 9.31(h) x 0.39(d)
Lexile:	AD560L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Dean Robbins is a journalist and children's book author. His previous books include, Two Friends; Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass, illustrated by Sean Qualls and Selina Alko, and Miss Paul and the President, illustrated by Nancy Zhang. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin, with his family. You can visit him at deanrobbins.net.

Elizabeth Baddeley teaches design and is an illustrator whose previous work includes A Woman in the House (and Senate) by Ilene Cooper, Women Who Broke the Rules: Mary Todd Lincoln by Kathleen Krull, and I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark by Debbie Levy. She lives in Kansas City, Missouri. See more of her work at ebaddeley.com. Follow her on Twitter at @BizBeth.

Editorial Reviews

06/14/2021

Bursting with clouds of dust and rocket flames, realistic mixed-media spreads by Baddely (Leave It to Abigail!) deliver concentrated energy to this picture biography of sportswoman Kitty O’Neil (1946–2018). On the cover, O’Neil looks intently out of her helmet, giving a hint of what’s to come. Robbins (Margaret and the Moon) first sketches in the backstory: fearless and obsessed with speed, O’Neil, who “lost her hearing in a childhood fever,” sets records “as the fastest water skier and the fastest boat racer.” Soon, she decides to pursue becoming the fastest driver; Baddeley shows her training in her rocket-powered vehicle, the Motivator, which she must learn to keep in control at dizzying speeds of hundreds of miles an hour. At last, she’s ready, and suspense is high (end papers show her mechanic counting down in sign language). After O’Neil fulfills her goal, then surpasses it, “Everywhere she went, fans cheered. She could not hear their cheering, but she could feel it in her bones.” Robbins’s portrait moves as quickly as O’Neil did, bringing readers’ attention to a woman focused on excellence and undaunted by obstacles. Back matter includes an author’s note and information about the subject’s vehicle and world records. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Marietta Zacker, Gallt & Zacker Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Alexandra Penfold, Upstart Crow Literary. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

"This thrilling biography provides excellent representation of the deaf community as well as of a woman in sports." —School Library Journal, starred review

From the Publisher

★ 07/01/2021

Gr 1–3—Speed! Action! Excitement! This incredible biography shares the adventures of daredevil and record breaker Kitty O'Neil (1946–2018). The book begins at the onset of a world record attempt, then cuts back to Kitty's childhood and the events leading up to the current attempt. Kitty lost her hearing in childhood but as the book explains, "that didn't slow her down." Short sentences throughout the work build anticipation to Kitty's big challenge of breaking the women's land-speed record. The illustrations are colorful and detailed, which will keep children engaged and support comprehension. With its exciting pace, this book could be used as a read aloud or enjoyed individually. The back material includes facts about Kitty O'Neil's records, sports, and stunts, as well as details about her supercar, the SMI Motivator. Young race fans and car enthusiasts will appreciate these details. There are also author's notes which, like the facts and details, are written with young readers in mind. With exciting prose and positive representation, this book would be an excellent addition to biography collections. VERDICT This thrilling biography provides excellent representation of the deaf community as well as of a woman in sports. Highly recommended.—Christina Salazar, Mesquite I.S.D., TX

School Library Journal

2021-06-02
A sportswoman who was unstoppable.

Born in 1946 and Deaf from age 2, Kitty O’Neil was an active child from the get-go and went on to become a world-record breaker (holder of the women’s land-speed record and fastest quarter mile in auto history, among others), a stunt performer featured in movies and television, and an athlete who succeeded in a wide array of sports, including boat racing, diving, waterskiing, karate, cycling, skating, and horseback riding. How did she do it? From childhood, she wanted to be “the fastest girl on Earth,” and she continually focused on her goals and practiced while thriving on the breathtaking exhilaration of speed. Though at times a bit unwieldy, the illustrations of the determined woman in action overall match the enthusiasm of the animated, appealing, and accessible text. A book with a Deaf hero that doesn’t focus on Deafness and a tale of a feminist icon that doesn’t focus on sex, this selection presents O’Neil’s achievements without context; the challenges O’Neil presumably faced as a Deaf and female athlete go unmentioned. Readers learn in the aftermatter that O'Neil was also of Cherokee descent, an otherwise unexplored aspect of her identity. In making this decision, the author chose to focus on O’Neil’s accomplishments, which are astounding on their own. While the absence of contextual information is a pity, what’s here is bound to engage and excite readers and may inspire them to discover more about this unique, driven athlete and her love of speed. (This book was reviewed digitally.)(Editor's note: This review has been updated to clarify the subject's Native identity.)

An energetic portrayal of O’Neil’s accomplishments that excludes historical and social background. (author's note, notes, resources) (Informational picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews