'Kid Athletes' with stories by David Stabler and illustrations by Doogie Horner tells children true stories from the lives of famous athletes.

The book is divided in to 3 sections telling stories of kids with rough beginnings, how family plays a role and the importance of practicing. There are representations from all kinds of sports starting with baseball and Babe Ruth who liked to cause trouble as a kid. Michael Jordan had to deal with having two taller brothers until he had a growth spurt. Jockey Julie Krone was good at taming a certain horse that nobody else seemed to be able to tame.

These stories and others are short, fun and inspiring. I learned some things I didn't know about these athletes. The illustrations are kind of like cartoons and are a lot of fun.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Quirk Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.

Many people look up to sports stars, especially kids. Unfortunately, they are not all worthy of the hero designation, but the athletes in this book all overcame situations in their lives (particularly their childhood) to become the famous athlete they are recognized as being. David Stabler introduced us to well-known athletes and described their upbringing and struggles to get to the top. Both male and female athletes were highlighted and a variety of sports. Some of the issues they dealt with included racism, sexism, being sent to reform school as a child, being involved in a serious accident that resulted in serious physical damage and even lack of funds to participate in sports. Helping to overcome the odds the athletes usually had one person in their corner that made all the difference in turning their lives around, redirecting their negative energies into positive things, and turning mentors into heroes. if it wasn't a single person, it was family that pushed many athletes to do their best and overcome clumsiness or other issues. The last section in the book dealt with athletes who persevered and practised over and over to develop their skills. I enjoyed the stories and learned about some of the athletes that I knew and some I did not. This book would be inspirational to kids who have situations to deal with in their lives that might be roadblocks to their success. The old adage of practice makes perfect is definitely demonstrated in this book. The illustrations are not photographs, but cute, cartoonish pictures that help to add some humour to the story. This would be a great addition to a school library.

This is such a fun and engaging books. Our students love sports books and this will especially appeal to hard to engage readers.