Library Picks: Olympic Reads

Many of us will be on the edge of our seats watching swimmers, runners, and gymnasts display super-human speed and strength for the next couple of weeks as the Olympic Games get underway in London.  If Friday’s opening ceremonies gave you a little bit of Olympic fever, here are some books at the Orion Township Public Library you might want to check out. 

Dream Team: How Michael, Magic, Larry, Charles, and the Greatest Team of All Time Conquered the World and Changed the Game of Basketball Forever

By Jack McCallum

Never before and never since has basketball known a team quite like the United States men’s team at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.  Coached by the late Chuck Daly (then head coach of the Detroit Pistons), the team consisted of such greats as Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Byrd.  Relying on both his own experiences with the team while covering them during the Olympics and also on new interviews with the players, Sports Illustrated writer Jack McCallum reveals the behind-the-scenes story of the Dream Team from the selection of players to the final Gold Medal game.   

How to Watch the Olympics: The Essential Guide to the Rules, Statistics, Heroes, and Zeroes of Every Sport

By David Goldblatt and Johnny Acton

Sports fans and Olympic trivia buffs rejoice!  Goldblatt and Acton have provided a complete manual of rules and regulations for every sport that will take place at this year’s games.  With humor and helpful diagrams, you’ll learn exactly what to look for in each sport.  Just how do they score those vaults?  They all look the same to me!  In addition to rules and stats, look for amusing anecdotes about past competitors.

Showdown at Shepherd’s Bush: The 1908 Olympic Marathon and the Three Runners Who Launched a Sporting Craze

By David Davis

It was 1908 when current host city London hosted its first Olympic Games.  These particular games saw many firsts including the first Opening Ceremony and the first modern Olympic marathon.  David Davis, a sports journalist, tells the story of three of the stars of the race: Johnny Hayes, a poor Irish-American who was used to running without shoes; Italian candy maker Dorando Pietri; and Canadian Tom Longboat, a member of the Onondaga tribe.  A messy finish (one runner entered the stadium the wrong way and another got help over the finish line) and race reporting by none other than Arthur Conan Doyle made the race hugely popular and brought more attention to the Olympics as a whole.  This should appeal to anyone interested in running or who just has Olympics on the brain right now!