With thanks to the author, publishers Quarto Publishing Group – Frances Lincoln Children's Books, and NetGalley for providing me with a digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

This is another fantastic instalment in the Little People Big Dreams series, which is always a firm favourite of mine and my family.

The story’s message is once again a positive one for young readers. Mary was always a sporty child, but only took up boxing at the age of 15 after being inspired by the success of another Indian boxer. Despite resistance from her family and others who didn’t agree with the idea of women in boxing, she persisted and, through her hard work and determination, had great success at the world amateur level and even won a medal at the 2012 Olympic Games. She also became a member of the Indian parliament where she again championed the idea of women in sports, and opened a boxing academy to help other young girls to achieve their dreams just like she did.

The mini-biography of Mary (complete with a timeline) at the end of the book is a great resource for young readers to cement the facts learned in the book, and offers advice on how to learn more about Mary.

Top marks as always, and I look forward to reading more of the series.

I am twenty something years old, and safe to say Mary Kom is an inspiration to women and athletes everywhere! I didn't know about her before reading this book, so I can't speak to how well the book tells her history but the story is amazing and inspiring. Little girls getting to read about her will know that they can be anything they want to be by reading her story!

The Little People, Big Dreams biography book series is a fun and informative reading experience. This book on Mary Kom introduced me to someone I was not aware of before. It was fun reading about Mary Kom and her experience as a female boxer. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

This book about Mary Kom is eye opening and shows what women can achieve when family & friends support somebody. It was an all round fun read.

Here is another title in this excellent series of short biographies for kids. This time, I got to read about Mary Kom, someone whom I did not know. As is always the case in the Little People, Big Dreams titles, readers will find a story with inspiration, this time about a girl who dreamed of becoming a boxer. Learn how she achieved this, how she grew along the way and how she gave back.

This book is beautifully illustrated and tells Mary’s story well. Give it to a child to show them how dreams can lead to accomplishments.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.

The reason I enjoy this series is because it tells me, in a quick format, who these people are and why I should or might care. As a 72 year old dude, not into sports, I had no idea who Mary Kom is. Now I do know. I know enough not to pick a fight with her. She's beat the stuffing out of me. Good to know. Once more, an excellent series, well written and illustrated and a quick introduction for those of us who somehow just don't know it all.

Little People, BIG DREAMS strikes again! I did not know the story of Mary Kom, and this was fantastic, such an amazing story to learn of such a talented girl. I am thrilled to get to read this with my daughter, and will be adding this to our collection. Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read the ARC, it is always appreciated!

My son and I always enjoy reading this series of books together. I enjoyed this one as it was a female athlete neither of us had heard of competing in a sport which isn't considered very feminine.

I was inspired to read this book because before I picked up this book, I had never heard of Mary Kom before. Written by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara and illustrated by Jen Khatun, this story focuses on the life of Olympian boxer Mary Kom—from her humble beginnings in India to her 2012 bronze medal winning in boxing and beyond.

This is a fascinating tale of how women in patriarchal countries (including those in the Western world) can achieve so much with sheer determination. But besides just winning in sports, Sanchez Vegara reveals that Kom also won in her personal life. While Kom’s parents thought boxing would interfere with her future marriage plans, the author showed how Kom won in that as well, by marrying and having several children. The author subtly revealed that Kom’s pursuit of sports was not to find a husband, but rather, to fulfill her own goals and for enjoyment. Women have the freedom to marry and have children. And women also have the freedom to NOT marry and to NOT have children—and that in itself doesn’t diminish a woman’s worth one iota. Kudos to Sanchez Vegara for highlighting this!

Overall, this was an excellent introduction to Mary Kom. I received an ARC of “Mary Kom” by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara from NetGalley, Quarto Publishing Group, and Frances Lincoln Children's Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Another great addition to the Little People, Big Dreams series!

I had never heard about Mary Kim before this book, but I really enjoyed this book about her. I liked that it also went into the amazing things she has done since winning her Olympic metal. The illustrations were beautiful and I love all the details that are added into the backgrounds.

I can’t wait to read more from this series with my children!

This book deals with real life topics in a way that children can understand. I love that this book is about little people having big dreams. Books that encourage children to feel like they can be anything that they set their mind to is just truly amazing. I am also so grateful that this book has minority representation as that is rarer to find in books until now. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to read this book as an arc, and i highly recommend it.

I really enjoy the books in this series and it is rare for this author to bring out a new release for the series that featured someone I have never ever heard of, but that is indeed what happened with the latest release on Mary Kom.

This book is about a young girl called Mary who ended up following her dreams and becoming a national treasure and famous female boxer in India - something that wasn't a popular choice for girls at that time as they were mainly expected to marry and have children and ultimately stay away from the limelight, but Mary had other plans.

Mary's story is one of determination, passion and strength. Not only did she achieved her dreams and excel in the sport of Boxing, she also married and had twins and carried on with her passion winning a Bronze medal at the 2012 London Olympics.

Mary opened a boxing academy for budding young athletes, became a member of parliament and campaigned for animals’ rights - she really was "Magnificent Mary". In 2020 she was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, one of the highest accolades in India.

It is 4 stars from me for this one, highly recommended and a great addition to the Little People, BIG Dreams series!

This book was very cute and very inspirational. As someone that has young daughters, I’d love to have a hard copy of this to share with them! Go Mary!

inspirational story for the Magnificent Mary, a girl who becomes a boxer who always wins. She opened a boxing academy for a girl, helping them to be boxers like her. Her voice for protecting animal welfare is aloud. Her life will be an inspiration for the opportunity of positive role model for young girls. The illustrations are amazing, also the biography and the photos on the end of the book. I will recommend it to anyone who wants to be a boxer or athlete. Thanks a lot to Netgalley for the opportunity I'd have read this magnificent story.

Mary Kom by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara and Jen Khatun is successfully introduces children to the life and accomplishments of a remarkable athlete while delivering an inspiring message about the power of perseverance. The combination of engaging text and vibrant illustrations makes it a wonderful addition to any child's bookshelf, offering both inspiration and a celebration of an extraordinary individual.

"Courage can turn dreams into victories."

I love the Little People Big Dream series. It isn't just for younger audience members to be able to discover new and interesting people. For me this happened with Mary Kom I'm afraid to say. Mary Kom one of the world's greatest boxer. Went from helping her parents in the fields to becoming a champion. Another great attention to the series.

The only thing I felt a little off was the illustrations something didn't sit right with them.

Thank you Netgalley and Frances Lincoln Children's Books for a copy of the book for an honest review.

The Little People, Big Dreams series is a fantastic set of biographies for kiddos. This one was not an exception. I learned all about Mary Kom, who became one of the word's greatest boxers. I wasn't familiar with Mary's story so it was great to learn all about her! The illustrations on this one didn't appeal to me quite as much as many in this series, but it was still a great read and I learned a lot!

Thanks to NetGalley, Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara, and Quarto Publishing for the chance to read and review. My opinions are my own.

I had never heard of Mary Kom but I always love the books in this series. This one was particularly good! Mary hid her talent from her family when she started boxing because they had more traditional goals for her. Mary was wildly successful at boxing, earning several world titles, went to parliament, and still got married and had children like her parents wanted. She can do anything.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

Just when I think that I had read the best book in this series, a new one shows up. Not knowing anything about Kom could have been tricky, though this book is so well-presented, designed, illustrated and Kom’s life story and her endurance is so well told that there was no trick. Excellent.

We love the Little People, Big Dreams series in our house and this newest edition is just as lovely as the rest of the series.

We loved learning Mary's story from her childhood to having her own family and the hardships and achievements along the way. My only criticism is how it's suggested she required her family's support to become a world champion.