Payton

School Library Journal

Gr 6-10 The recently-retired Chicago Bears running back, Walter Payton, has been described by many experts as the greatest football player of all time. Because Payton is still very popular and well-remembered, this biography should find readers among the superstar's many fans. As sports biographies go, however, it is a mediocre effort. Most of the early chapters feature rhapsodies on Payton's athletic prowess, with a massive number of quotes from teammates, coaches, sportswriters, and broadcasters. These early chapters lead into a number of redundant discussions on the differences between Payton's running skills and those of Gale Sayers, an earlier Chicago Bear great. It isn't until chapter four that Sufrin finally begins to tell about Payton's life and career. Unfortunately, much of the discussion of Payton's career is merely a listing of his statistics for individual games and seasons, and little is told of Payton's personal life. A truly great player such as Payton deserves a less redundant, better organized, and more informative biography than this. Todd Morning, Schaumburg Township Public Library, Ill.