Why She Plays: A Book Review

Did you ever wonder what combination of traits creates the perfect player? Is it raw talent? Is it drive? Or is it simply the will to win combined with passion and pure ability? Christine A. Baker answers all this and more in Why She Plays: The World of Women’s Basketball

With a forward by the WNBA’s New York Liberty’s Becky Hammond, Why She Plays is divided into six parts (Youth Basketball, High School Basketball, College Basketball, The WNBA, USA Basketball, and Media Coverage and Women’s Basketball) and ends with an eye-opening epilogue entitled Building the Perfect Player. From women’s basketball coaches to commentators to former to current players to the extraordinary to the average, Baker dives into the mind of the female athlete and packs this paperback with valuable insights.

Sprinkling in powerful statistics and personal remarks throughout the book, Baker, a former stand out college basketball player, uses her own observations to give the book a personal touch, including this memorable quote about an athlete’s love of the game.

“The happiest, purest form of inspiration and confidence I have ever experienced is found on the basketball court. Deep within me I feel the pure magic, the sheer, unabashed joy of a high arching fade away, a perfect pick and roll, or a flawless box-out. When I cross over the threshold and step out onto a gym floor. I’m able to shut the world out completely and leave my introverted shell for forty minutes to become a vial, outspoken leader who is capable of scoring at will, who is capable of winning games and making my teammates better than they thought they could be.” (Baker, 158)

Why She Plays is a modern women’s basketball bible with an exclusive pass into the world of the elite female athlete. Baker covers more floor in the basketball world than Candace Parker covers on game day. If you’re a fan of women’s athletics, a current or former basketball player, or a parent of a child navigating the world of youth sports, pick up Why She Plays.

Reviewer Keri Mikulski is the author of Screwball and Change-up as well the upcoming Full Court Press (a Pretty Tough novel).

Blogderby Book Edition: Sporty reads for teens

Sports fiction for teens: As an athletic fanatic and sporty young adult author, I’m always on the hunt for an amazing book that features an athletic main character. And guess what? Some of the best teen and tween novels on bookshelves today feature a sporty protagonist.

Born to run? There’s a ton of great sporty books out there for cross-country and track lovers. Eileen Cook’s (http://www.eileencook.com) What Would Eileen Do? follows Emma on her quest to snag a track scholarship with some major boy bumps along the way. Pheobe in Tera Lynn Child’s (http://www.teralynnchilds.com/) sensation, Oh My Gods, is a die-hard cross-country runner. Even best selling author, Megan McCafferty’s (http://www.meganmccafferty.com/) main character Jessica Darling (Sloppy Firsts) runs cross-country in high school.

 Performancing enhancing steroids isn’t just for boys anymore. Kathy Mackel (http://us.penguingroup.com/static/html/blogs/guest-author/boost-kathy-mackel) tackles this controversial subject and more in her eye-opening basketball book, Boost.

 If soccer is your game, you’re in luck because soccer books are booming. Liz Tigelaar’s (http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/471527.Liz_Tigelaar) Pretty Tough is filled with plenty of soccer action, both on the field and off. Parker from Tina Ferraro’s (http://www.tinaferraro.com/) The ABC’s of Kissing Boys thinks she’s a sho-in for the varsity soccer team after two long years on junior varsity except she doesn’t make it. 

Are you a fastpitch fanatic? After moving to Texas, Ella learns to fit in through the softball team in Weezie Mackey’s (http://www.weeziekerrmackey.com/) Throwing Like a Girl. Keri Mikulski’s (http://www.kerimikulski.com) Screwball series follows superstar pitcher, Ashley Clarke, as she attempts to juggle serious softball with school, sports, and a social life, including a new boyfriend.

 Teen sports fiction doesn’t stop with softball. Alexa Young’s (http://www.alexayoung.com/) Frenemies series features gymnastics. Chris and Winston go on a post graduation cross-country bike trek in Shift by Jennifer Bradbury (http://www.jennifer-bradbury.com/). Boxing is Taylor Lucia’s sport of choice in Taylor Morris’s (http://www.taylormorris.com/) tween book, Total Knockout. And Liz Tiglear (http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/471527.Liz_Tigelaar) tackles football in the second Pretty Tough series novel, Playing for the Boys.

 Can’t find the sport you’re looking for? Or am I missing a great book? Let me know at www.kerimikulski.com. Keep reading.