In 2008, we launched the “Sports Education Books of the Year Award,” a program that has become one of my favorite activities at the Institute for International Sport. We created this award to recognize exceptional sport-themed books that contribute to the education of youth and adults, and to the American sports culture. In 2008, we selected Game On, by Tom Farrey. In 2009, we selected Losing Season, a series of sport poems by Jack Ridl.
Here are the 2010 winners:
- Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend by James Hirsch (Simon and Schuster) was selected for the author’s wonderful attention to detail and for his splendid job in capturing Willie’s underappreciated but significant contribution to race relations.
- The High School Sports Parent: Developing Triple-Impact Competitors by Jim Thompson (Balance Sports Publishing) was selected for its concise and significant delivery of a game plan that parents can use to help their children make the most of their high school sports experience.
- How Lucky You Can Be: The Story of Coach Don Meyer by Buster Olney (Ballantine/Random) was selected for the depiction of Don Meyer’s dedication to coaching in the face of life-threatening injuries and terminal illness, and for capturing the inner workings of a coach’s relationship with his family and his players.
We like to receive recommendations for this award. If you read a book published in 2011 that fulfills the aforementioned criteria, by all means let us know.