Game Face: What Does a Female Athlete Look Like?

A friend was looking for a great book for a young woman, to help ease her into adulthood. The usual fiction fare came to mind, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, To Kill a Mockingbird, and so on. Then I came across Game Face: What Does a Female Athlete Look Like? and immediately decided this was the perfect choice for a preteen girl. In fact, it's a great addition to your mother's coffee table, your best friend's bookshelf, and your sister's "girls rule" collection.

Created and edited by Jane Gottesman, and including a foreword from Penny Marshall, this book takes you on a romp through women in sports from the 19th to the 21st century. The pictures capture superstar athletes like Serena Williams and Jackie Joyner-Kersee, along with small-town sports victors like the determined young "tomboy on a skateboard." The photographs range from showing the agony of defeat to the gritty triumph of victory on the faces of women from all around the world. It's a truly magnificent display of woman power on the field and court, in the ring and stadium, and beyond. Definitely recommended for all the "girlz" in your life. --E. Brooke Gilbert