Good Sports
Step Up Your Game with Our Sports Collection
Are you a sports fan? We’ve compiled vocabulary lists for some of the best fiction and nonfiction about athletics — from basketball to fencing to roller derby — as well as topical lists to help you master even more sports-related lingo. Game on!
Fast PitchSoftball player Shenice tries to lead her team to the championships while investigating a family mystery.
The CrossoverTwin brothers Josh and Jordan Bell clash both on and off the basketball court. How high can you score on this list of words from Alexander's award-winning novel in verse?
Don't Hate the PlayerEmilia, a field hockey star with Ivy League dreams, tries to keep her virtual identity hidden when a member of a rival team recognizes her during an esports tournament.
Courage to SoarA Body in Motion, A Life in BalanceIn this autobiography, cowritten with Michelle Burford, decorated gymnast Simone Biles recounts her path to becoming an Olympic gold medalist.
ProudFencer Ibtihaj Muhammad was the first Muslim American woman to win an Olympic medal. In this memoir, she chronicles her unlikely and often difficult rise to the top in her sport.
HeatA young baseball player tries to hide his complicated family situation in order to make it to the Little League World Series.
The Track SeriesEach book in Jason Reynolds's popular series focuses on a different member of a competitive track team.
Becoming KareemGrowing Up On and Off the CourtIn this memoir, basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabar recounts his youth and traces his path to the NBA.
MoneyballThe Art of Winning an Unfair GameThis nonfiction book explores how the manager of the Oakland A's built a high-performing team by using a unique set of criteria to assess prospective players.
Outcasts UnitedThe Story of a Refugee Soccer Team That Changed a TownThis book tells the inspiring true story of Luma Mufleh, a Jordanian woman who quit her job in order to coach the Fugees, a soccer team of refugee boys.
Roller GirlIn this graphic novel, Astrid deals with changing friendships during a summer at roller derby camp.
We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League BaseballThis engaging history of Negro League Baseball details the obstacles and prejudices African-American baseball players faced in the 1920s, 30s, and 40s.
The Wide Words of SportsGet Your Game On with These Sports-Related Vocab WordsWant a winning vocabulary? Ace vocabulary from tennis, tackle words from football, knock it out of the park with baseball banter, and slam dunk with definitions of basketball terms.
SeabiscuitIn this engrossing work of nonfiction, Laura Hillenbrand recounts how three men teamed up to turn an unlikely racehorse into an American racing icon.
The Boys in the BoatNine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin OlympicsTrain your brain with words from this true account of the American crew team that won gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.
Maniac MageeAn orphan runs away from his guardians to search for a real home. On his journey, he performs feats of athleticism and confronts racial prejudice.
BookedKwame Alexander scores again with this story about the soccer-playing son of a linguistics professor. This list of words can assist your goal of improving your vocabulary.
TangerineSoccer goalie Paul Fisher uncovers dark family secrets when he moves to the strange town of Tangerine, Florida.
The Running DreamTrack star Jessica is devastated when her leg must be amputated after a terrible car accident — but she is determined to run again.
Games of DeceptionThe True Story of the First U.S. Olympic Basketball Team at the 1936 Olympics in Hitler's GermanyThis nonfiction account traces the history of basketball through the U.S. team's first Olympic competition, in pre-World War II Germany.
Into Thin AirIn this memoir, Jon Krakauer recounts a disastrous expedition to the summit of Mt. Everest that left five people dead and many others — including the author — questioning their own culpability.
Boy21Finley sees basketball as an escape from the violence of his home town. He develops a friendship—and rivalry—with Russ, who is struggling to cope with the murder of his parents.
The Blind SideThis biography follows Michael Oher from his troubled childhood to his successful career as a professional football player.
The Brooklyn NineThis novel traces a family's deep connection to the sport of baseball through nine generations.
After the Shot DropsBunny and Nasir's friendship is tested after Bunny receives an athletic scholarship to a new school.
Now Is the Time for RunningDeo and his brother Innocent are forced to flee their village in Zimbabwe.
King of the MoundMy Summer with Satchel PaigeAfter a bout of polio, Nick is unsure if he will ever be able to play baseball again — but he draws inspiration from star pitcher Satchel Paige.
Honus & MeA Baseball Card AdventureThanks to a magical baseball card, Joe Stoshack travels back in time to 1909 and meets baseball legend Honus Wagner.
The Million Dollar ShotEleven-year-old Eddie enters a poetry contest and wins the grand prize — a trip to New York City to see the NBA finals and a chance to take a foul shot worth a million dollars.
Ice MagicWhen middle schooler Pie Pennelli is told by the Byrd twins that his recent hockey game had exactly the same moves and score as the one they'd played on a toy the night before, he is unsure what to think about this possible magic.
Get a Grip, Vivy Cohen!Eleven-year-old Vivian Jane Cohen exchanges letters with major-league baseball pitcher Vincent James Capello with hopes that his shared initials and professional tips could help her play on a little league team in Lakeview, California.
Rez BallFifteen-year-old Tre Brun is determined to help the Red Lake Nation's Warriors win Minnesota's high school basketball tournament.
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