BooksForKidsBlog

Thursday, September 06, 2012

Sport! G Is For Gold Medal: An Olympic Alphabet Book by Brett Herzog

A is for Ancient Greece and Athens.

Since the pageantry, excitement, and hoopla of the summer Olympics comes around every four years, the games are a brand-new experience for each group of elementary students who see them unfold before them.

Fortunately, Sleeping Bear Press has an entry is their noted Alphabet series, lavishly illustrated in appropriately heroic style by Doug Bowles, Brett Herzog's G is for Gold Medal: An Olympics Alphabet (Sleeping Bear Press Sports & Hobbies) (Sleeping Bear Press, 2011) to catch the wave of interest created by the games in August.

As in all the books in this popular series, there is a mix of information for young research report writers here on the history of the Olympic Games, from the games of the ancient Greeks to the 1898 modern revival in Athens. This abecedarius touches on famous heroes such as Jim Thorpe, Baron Pierre de Couberton, the early advocate of the Games, competitions which have become "extinct" (such as the tug-of-war) and new events added to the slate in 2012, and, of course, the ParaOlympics now in progress in London. The popular sports are featured, H for High Jump, L for (gymnastics') Landing, and R for Race with its fleet-footed runners. There is a page with emphasis upon the many countries that participate, and even a salute to the Olympic's youngest but still anonymous competitor, the lightweight seven-year-old coxswain from the 1900 games.

For young readers who enjoyed their first Olympic Games, G is for Gold Medal: An Olympics Alphabet (Sleeping Bear Press Sports & Hobbies) is a good way to relive that experience and fill in some of the knowledge gaps about this worldwide event.

Labels: ,

2 Comments:

Post a Comment



<< Home