David Beckham: Soccer Megastar

School Library Journal

Gr 2-4-These slim biographies cover the childhoods and early fame of these young soccer stars. All have a large, bold font and mostly short declarative sentences and contain a multitude of colorful action photographs. However, all too often the captions include the word "here" as in "here she celebrates-" or "here he holds-," which makes the texts stiff and redundant. The lists of further reading cite recent, age-appropriate magazine articles. The chronology in Chastain differs from the text, which may confuse readers. In Donovan, the author mentions that when the athlete scored a goal, he would "do something crazy," but the author neglects to elucidate any further. While reluctant readers will find these titles appealing, their flaws render them serviceable at best. A note in each book states that it has not been authorized or endorsed by the biographee.-Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.