Jesse Owens: Champion Athlete

School Library Journal

Gr 4-6-- ``I decided I wasn't going to come down. I was going to fly,'' said Jesse Owens of his 26' 5'' long-jump at the 1936 Olympics, which set a record unbroken for 24 years. Rennert tells the champion athlete's story simply, directly, and inspiringly, placing particular focus on Owens's years of track-and-field successes. Uncomplicated vocabulary and sentence structure make them accessible to fourth graders, yet the telling is effective. Several anecdotes glow with charm. A few well-placed quotes and some material with built-in tension (Adolf Hitler's arrival at the Olympic Stadium in 1936) supply all the accents required. The inclusion of the glossary is a good idea, but with just a dozen terms, it's hardly adequate, leaving undefined for this age group such concepts as starting blocks and hitchkicking. A simple chronology will help readers keep their places. Black-and-white photographs vary in character and quality. Some are excellent. Even busy backgrounds behind profiles of Owens sprinting and long-jumping don't diminish the impact of that body in motion. --Liza Bliss, Leominster Public Library, MA