The Kingfisher Book of Soccer Skills

Gr 5–8—Gifford provides plenty of information about the "Beautiful Game." He begins with basic information through spreads covering "The field," "Preparing to play," etc., and then moves on to discussing skill development and presenting step-by-step instructions for drills. Accompanied by plenty of colorful photographs of young male and female players as well as professionals, the narrative discusses different passes, heading, dribbling, and many other skills so that even athletes who may have already been playing for a couple of seasons can improve. Thumbnail photos break up the instructional drills into comfortable bites of information. Final spreads describe "Professional soccer," "Major competitions," and "The World Cup." The section "Soccer legends" features one paragraph for each star. In addition, players are highlighted in a sidebar within chapters, e.g., "Goalkeeping" profiles Gianluigi Buffon. Soccer terms are printed vertically on the right border of each page and repeated in the glossary. This volume is a strong replacement for some of Gifford's older titles that may still be on shelves.—Blair Christolon, Prince William Public Library System, Manassas, VA