Review by Booklist Review
This appealing picture book introduces the youngest 100-meter-race champion in Olympic history. In 1928, an Illinois high-school track coach watched Betty Robinson running to catch a train and recruited her for the boys' track team. Aiming to show that women weren't "too weak for track," the 16-year-old athlete ran in the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics, becoming the first woman to win gold in track and field. After her leg was crushed in a 1931 plane crash, doctors said she would never walk again. She disagreed, persevered, and won gold again at the storied 1936 Olympics in Berlin. One paragraph describing Robinson's feelings as her first 100-meter race at the 1928 Olympics was about to begin includes the sentence "Running had made her toenails fall off" with no explanation and little context. Otherwise, the text flows well as it tells this heartening story of grit, determination, and lasting achievement. Using color and texture well, the nicely composed digital illustrations convey a sense of athletic grace that enhances the inspiring story.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1--5--Long before Wilma Rudolph or Florence Griffith Joyner, there was Betty Robinson, the first woman to win an Olympic gold medal in track and field. Born in Riverdale, IL, in 1911, she was only 16 when she won the gold in Amsterdam for the 100-yard dash. America celebrated their smiling "Golden Girl" with parades and accolades, but while training for the 1932 Olympics, a biplane crash left the athlete in a coma with a crushed left leg. Even after she began to heal, one leg was shorter than the other, and the doctors said she would never walk again. The gold medalist was determined not only to walk but to run again. She eventually competed in the 1936 Olympics and won another gold with her relay team, defeating the confident German team the same year that Jesse Owens won four gold medals. The digital illustrations reflect the clothing and technology of the period. One particularly poignant spread shows the injured athlete pushing herself to stand from her wheelchair, use crutches, a cane, and then finally her own two legs to run. Another shows Robinson and her teammates looking apprehensively at their German counterparts with the Nazi flag waving in the foreground. VERDICT A great choice for women's history lesson plans, gym teachers, or to teach the character trait of determination. Pair with Kathleen Krull's Wilma Unlimited or Pat Zietlow Miller's The Quickest Kid in Clarksville for a dashing good time.--Barbara Auerbach, Cairo Public Library, NY
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
"…all that matters is the runner and the track." Spotted racing for a train, Betty Robinson was invited to join the boys high school track team, and after only three competitions, the 16-year-old white girl won the first women's gold medal in track and field during the first Olympic Games that allowed women to run, in 1928. Action-filled illustrations give a sense of the period and focus on her runner's stance and determined facial expressions while straightforward text points out her resolve, her experiences, and the challenges she faced as a female athlete. Betty Robinson continued to set records while training for the 1932 Olympics--until her biplane crashed and she was told she would never walk again. Wracked with pain, she began a grueling regimen that enabled her to compete in the 1936 Olympic relay and win with her team. Betty's resilience is presented in a simple, believable way, not mentioning that recovery from such an injury may be impossible. Focusing strictly on the runner and her struggles and accomplishments--the fact that black women did not compete is not addressed while Jesse Owen's 1936 win in Berlin is mentioned only in the endnotes--this powerful volume provides a specific but inspiring tale of athletics, feminism, resilience, and teamwork. This vivid portrait is sure to encourage young readers and listeners to pursue their dreams. (Picture book/biography. 6-9) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
