Rating: 
Summary: What a kick!
Review: What an exciting book is SOCCER DREAMS! The energy, the crowds, the pace, the thrill of the sport -- all leap off the pages in full color. You can almost hear the sounds. Reporter Lauber's writing keeps up the pace, telling the history of a momentous era in Women's Sports:- taking us behind the scenes, into the bleachers & to the press conferences to rub shoulders with the best reporters. & we get to meet each member of the 1999 Women's World Champions too! SOCCER DREAMS is not only a great book about the sport, women athletes & the long haul to success, it is about a youngster's enthusiasm, passion, persistence...& success! Very well done & the perfect gift for your favorite children, students & sports fans. Rebeccasreads highly recommends SOCCER DREAMS for all, no matter their age or their passion, & do check out Rebecca's interview with this young author/reporter.
Rating:
Summary: A True Story Well Told
Review: When I got ready to read Soccer Dreams, I wasn't sure if it was something that would interest me. I'm not much of a sports person and know almost nothing about soccer. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I didn't need to know anything about sports at all to enjoy the book.
While the book is about 12-year-old Leah's experiences reporting on the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team for the St. Petersburg Times, it is also about a girl following her dreams. Leah takes the reader with her as she applies to be a reporter for the newspaper's X-Press Team -- a select group of kids who write a special section of the paper on various topics for other kids. A soccer player since she was seven, Leah is able to meet the players, cover the team's practices and be there for their victory at the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup Championship. Like any good book, the story has its ups and downs, its victories and defeats, but it is real life, and seeing it through Leah's eyes makes it all the more real.
I very much enjoyed reading the book, as well as seeing the letters and newspaper columns she wrote, the tickets she saved, and the color photographs her father took of her adventures. Her writing style is clear and natural and she knows how to tell a good story. If she writes like this now, I can't wait to see what she will do in the future!
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