20 Titles for Young Sports Stars – Summer Reading 2020

I’ve been mulling around the idea of creating summer reading lists this year. It’s been slow going as so much of m energy is put into figuring out how to run a library during a global pandemic! But, I didn’t want to re-create the wheel offering “Summer Reading for 5th Graders” either. Those types of lists can be found all over the Internet! And although they’re super helpful for parents looking for a great starting point for summer reading plans, I wanted to go a different route.

This year, I decided to focus on creating lists around different interests – sports, the arts, gaming, etc. Each list will include 20 books and will be all ages from board books to young adult titles. The lists will also include various formats and hopefully both fiction and nonfiction titles.

Depending on where you live, organized sports may not be something your sports-loving kids can participate in this summer due to the coronavirus. Have no fear, learn about what sports are allowed, and encourage kids to try something new this summer. And although there is no way I can highlight every sport available, I wanted to share some amazing sports books today. I included just a few nonfiction books and biographies, but there are dozens of great books out there to explore.

20 Titles for Young Sports Stars

1. The Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle by Christina Uss
2. The Berlin Boxing Club by Robert Sharenow
3. The Boy Who Saved Baseball by John H. Ritter
4. Checked by Cynthia Kadahota
5. Crossover by Kwame Alexander
6. Don’t Throw It to Mo! by David A. Adler, illustrated by Sam Ricks
7. The Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock
8. Froggy Learns to Swim by Jonathan London
9. Ghost by Jason Reynolds
10. Heat by Mike Lupica
11. In Your Shoes by Donna Gephart
12.  Peak by Roland Smith
13. The Princess and the Pit Stop The Princess and the Pit Stop by Tom Angleberger, illustrated by Dan Santat
14. Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson
15. The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen
16. Soccer Hour by Carol Nevius, illustrated by Bill Thomson
17. Takedown by Laura Shovan
18. Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina by Michaela DePrince with Elaine DePrince 
19. Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team by Steve Sheinkin
20. Up for Air by Laurie Morrison

More Resources

If you’re looking for even more great sports books, check out these four lists I made a few years ago!

• Run, Kick, Catch!: 10+ Sports Titles for Ages 3-7
• There’s No I in Team: 15+ Sports Titles for Ages 8-12
• Staying on Track: 13+ Sports Titles for Ages 13 and up
• Practice, Practice, Practice: 10+ Nonfiction Titles for Sports Readers

Check back every day this week for a new summer reading list:

• Activists
• Artists
• Gamers
• Outdoor Enthusiasts
• Readers
• STEM Enthusiasts