ALA Booklist (Mon May 01 00:00:00 CDT 2000)

%% This is a multi-book review. SEE the title My Soccer Book for next imprint and review text. %% (Reviewed May 1, 2000)

Horn Book (Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2003)

As the gods play the mortals in a game of basketball, two sportscasters discuss the event--and thereby narrate the book. The text and cartoony illustrations, complete with dialogue bubbles, are humorous (Hera turns the ref into a cow; Odysseus scores a basket using the "old Trojan-horse play"), but it's a one-joke premise that presumes that readers already have some knowledge of Greek mythology. Bib.

Kirkus Reviews

This small, square picture book introduction to our national pastime is accurate but unexciting. Brief information about equipment, clothing, positions, and basic play is conveyed through short, declarative sentences, illustrations, and a concluding 1-page glossary. Gibbons focuses on children at play in an open field and emphasizes having fun whether you're a player or spectator. Her recognizable cartoon illustrations in full color feature both girls and boys, some shaded to represent African-Americans. This complements Margaret Blackstone's livelier book, This is Baseball , which has a briefer text and follows an adult game played at a stadium. Though flatly told, it would probably be perfect for reading to a young child who is about to attend a baseball game for the first time. A companion volume is My Soccer Book . (Nonfiction. 3-7)

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2-In picture-book format, Gibbons provides the basic facts about two popular sports. Using short, clear sentences, she defines terms, explains the rules, and describes scoring. One line in each book mentions the equipment necessary for each game, but the information is well augmented by clearly labeled, colorful drawings showing additional gear, such as shin guards for soccer players or protective covering for the baseball catcher. Both books contain diagrams of the game fields. However, the words selected for the brief glossaries seem arbitrary; for example, "cleat" is defined in Soccer, but not in Baseball. These informative books will be enjoyed by new players or spectators of older siblings' events.-Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.