Sue Macy

Women and girls haven’t always played basketball. In fact, it was a struggle to play while acting “lady-like” in the late 1800s. Readers will enjoy learning about Agnes Motley and the competition that launched women into basketball through vivid prose and lively illustration.

The winter games began in France in 1924. This compelling examination of their start, the evolution of the games, and more are revealed in photographs and compelling text. It is current through the 2006 winter Olympic Games.

Even though the ancient Greeks conceived the Olympics, it was a small Frenchman “with a shrill voice and a bushy mustache” who almost single-handedly brought the modern Olympics to life again. This revealing, clear, and handsome book provides an engaging and authoritative overview of the summer Olympics.

Aaron Lansky always remembered his grandmother’s immigration story when she was forced to give up her candlesticks and her Yiddish book. Aaron also loved books. An informal narration and darkly hued illustrations (which the illustrator notes pay homage to Marc Chagall) introduce a fascinating man whose work continues in the Yiddish Book Center. Additional information concludes this attractive and informative biography.

It was August 6, 1926; Gertrude Ederle was about to become the first woman to swim the English Channel. Not only did she swim the channel, she did so faster than the fastest time of any man. Dramatic illustrations and complete endnotes conclude Trudy’s riveting story.