Skydiving

November 1, 2015

Gr 4-6-Fascinating details and amazing photos add context and perspective to each sport's overview. Unusual sports such as heliskiing and skydiving are clearly explained, and the text is supplemented by well-chosen graphics. A sequence of three photos in Skateboarding details the steps in an ollie, a basic skateboarding move. An image in Big Wave Surfing offers an underwater view of a duck dive, as a surfer pushes her board safely under the lip of a wave. Each volume offers questions to answer while reading, a set of vocabulary words to look for, and a series of questions to respond to after reading the book. Motocross mentions female stars such as Sue Fish and Tarah Geiger, as well as James "Bubba" Stewart, the first African American to win a major motocross championship. VERDICT These well-written books earn high marks.

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2015
Grades 2-4 This entry in the Intense Sports series captures the rush while also providing solid historical background on parachutingits invention, its use in WWII, and its development as a modern sport. Bailey describes the basic equipment and profiles prominent modern skydivers like Luigi Cani and Amy Chmelecki. BASE jumping (jumping from skyscrapers, etc.), wing suits, competitive events, diving etiquette, and current records get mentions, too. Most of the many color photos feature brightly hued parachutes or grinning divers in midair. Review questions and suggestions for literacy and enrichment activities enhance a survey that falls in level of detail between Skydiving, by Joanne Mattern (2009), and Carla Mooney's forthcoming, slightly more advanced Skydiving in Rosen's Sports to the Extreme series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)