A Sporting Chance

January 27, 2020
Alexander (All in a Drop) brings her accessible storytelling to this well-researched account of the man behind today’s Paralympic Games. Jewish neurologist Ludwig Guttmann escaped Hitler’s Germany to Britain and later founded a spinal injuries treatment center for wounded soldiers. Fourteen short chapters seamlessly flesh out Guttmann’s life and detail how his radical-for-the-time treatment plans—which included occupational therapy and sports such as archery and wheelchair basketball—helped patients formerly known as “incurables” to live and thrive. Competitions he organized for patients who had paraplegia later evolved into the Paralympics. Illustrated vignettes by Drummond (Pedal Power), as well as numerous archival photos and simple medical diagrams, keep the narrative moving apace, though some, including a cartoon-style soldier struck by shrapnel, appear lighthearted for the subject matter; sidebars detail paraplegia, the nervous system, and the historical treatment of people with disabilities. Brief portraits of six Paralympic medalists conclude this inspirational biography, which highlights the power of sport to motivate and heal while demonstrating how the dedication of one pioneering doctor continues to mean a life-changing difference for many. A timeline, extensive bibliography, and index are included. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 7–10. Author’s agent: Kathleen Rushall, Andrea Brown Literary.

March 1, 2020

Gr 3-6-Ludwig Guttmann was a respected Jewish neurosurgeon in Germany when the Nazi party came to power. When Guttmann relocated with his family to England in 1939, he was denied the opportunity to practice as a surgeon and decided to devote his time to medical research. At that time, patients paralyzed from spinal injuries were deemed "incurables" and left to die in hospital beds. Guttmann did not accept this prognosis: he developed a revolutionary treatment plan that saw unprecedented success, and World War II created many patients who needed his services. He realized that sports could build strength, boost confidence, raise spirits, and develop camaraderie in his patients. What started as a wheelchair sports competition between two hospitals grew into the international Paralympic Games, played on the same schedule and set in the same host city as the Olympics. Alexander covers a lot of ground in this biography. Yet the narrative never feels bogged down by the scope and depth of content; the clear writing employs a simple, matter-of-fact tone. Drummond's charming illustrations, stylistically reminiscent of Quentin Blake, help maintain an optimistic mood even during the darkest moments. Alexander does not reduce Guttmann's patients to objects of pity, but the text frankly discusses the negative implications of infantilizing and condescending attitudes toward people with disabilities. Profiles of accomplished modern Paralympic athletes in the final chapter will help young readers realize the far-reaching impact of Guttmann's work. VERDICT An uplifting biography that spotlights the dedicated physician who saved lives, created the Paralympic Games, and became a pioneer for disability rights.-Elizabeth Lovsin, Deerfield Public Library, IL

Copyright 2020 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from March 1, 2020
Alexander chronicles how Jewish doctor Ludwig Guttmann became "the founding father of the Paralympic Games." In 1917, with World War I underway, Guttmann graduated from high school and became an orderly in Germany's National Emergency Services, where he met a paralyzed coal miner with a grim prognosis: "Dead in six weeks." For decades, paralyzed patients' futures remained bleak. In 1939, after courageously resisting the rising Nazi regime, Guttmann--by then a neurologist--escaped to England. In 1944 he established his Spinal Injuries Center at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, where bedridden "incurables" languished. Guttmann, however, resolved to rescue them from "the human scrapheap," developing innovative treatments and encouraging self-sufficiency. Noting that playing such sports as wheelchair archery and basketball both "brought passion and fun back into patients' lives" and improved their health, he realized that public competitions would also show nondisabled people that patients were "more than their injuries." Through Guttmann's tireless advocacy, a 1948 archery competition on Stoke Mandeville's lawn evolved into the Paralympic Games, currently the world's third-largest sporting event. The author explores Guttmann's career in thorough medical and historical detail; diagrams and text boxes supplement discussions of everything from the nervous system to Nazi atrocities, enabling readers to fully appreciate his efforts. Alongside archival photographs, Drummond's color cartoon illustrations extend the straightforward text. Profiles of contemporary Paralympians provide an inspiring epilogue. Most photographed figures, including Guttmann, appear white; one contemporary athlete presents black. Informative, engaging, and important. (timeline, bibliography, notes, index) (Biography. 8-12)

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February 15, 2020
Grades 3-7 This inspiring biography recounts how Jewish, German-born Dr. Ludwig Guttmann revolutionized the treatment of soldiers with spinal injuries during WWII and founded the modern Paralympic Games. Trained as a neurologist in Germany, Guttmann was forced to flee to Oxford, England, with his family when Hitler rose to power. After four years, Guttmann was appointed the head of a spinal injury unit at the Stoke Mandeville Hospital near London. He thought spinal injury patients should be allowed to exercise in their wheelchairs and have the opportunity to learn useful job skills. In 1948, Guttmann started wheelchair sports competitions between the spinal injury patients at local hospitals?a competition that eventually evolved into the Paralympic Games. Of all his honors, Guttmann was most proud of "introducing sport into the rehabilitation of disabled people." The text, which is peppered with cartoon spot art, includes short biographies of notable Paralympic athletes, archival photos, source notes, a time line, bibliography, and index (not seen). This heartwarming biography will appeal to anyone who supports equal rights and disability justice.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)