The beauty of literature is that it creates worlds in which life can be better than reality, but it also gives room to explore reality and why it is the way it is. A great topic discussed in several books is women in sports. How can they succeed? How can they stand out? What does it mean to be a female athlete?
Some books tell stories about female Olympic athletes, teenage girls who try to balance their passion for sports and their day-to-day lives, and women who give a sport a try to regain control of their life. Whatever the case, fiction treats the topic of women in sports with respect, trying to showcase what reality can be.
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We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry
We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry is the story of a field hockey team at Danvers High. As they play their different matches in 1989, the players discover that the dark impulses of their Salem forebears are the secret to winning.
This book about women in sports focuses on the team’s journey to the state championship. Despite focusing mostly on the individual and collective challenges these girls face while playing hockey, it also touches upon the different ideas of femininity and how certain stereotypes are broken.
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Fitness Junkie by Lucy Sykes and Jo Piazza
Sometimes, when talking about women in sports, it is important to discuss the reason why some women begin practicing a sport and what their journey is. Fitness Junkie is the story of a successful CEO who is given the ultimatum to lose weight or lose her job. This is an outrageous idea, but it gives room for a funny and heartwarming novel.
To meet this ultimatum, Janey Sweet begins practicing naked yoga. This new addition to her life leads to meeting new people, a possible new love interest, and rediscovering herself. Toward the end of the novel, Janey wonders if she really needed to lose weight or if it was about finding herself again.
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Break the Fall by Jennifer Iacopelli
Audrey Lee surprises herself when a year after her spine surgery she makes it into the United States gymnastics team for the Olympics with her best friend. However, as she joins the team she realizes that the desire to be nothing but perfect is pressuring the team and it might lead to them falling apart. The only thing that is giving her hope is the new cute boy she has met, but she knows she can’t get distracted.
Break the Fall follows Audrey as she tries to balance her life, the issues arising on the gymnastics team, and her crush on the new boy. This book exposes the reality of women in sports as they try to navigate their professional and personal lives.
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Winterland: A Novel by Rae Meadows
Winterland: A Novel centers around the Soviet Union in 1973. Anya is an eight-year-old girl whose mother has disappeared. She doesn’t have many friends and her only confidant turns out to be someone who used to keep her mother’s secrets and may know what happened to her. However, Anya finds a bit of joy when she is selected to join the USSR gymnastics team.
Her participation in the gymnastics team is something that brings joy and honor to her family. But as Anya begins to train with other girls and advances in her competition, she realizes perfection is the goal and there isn’t room for mistakes.
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A Map to the Sun by Sloane Leong
Many women in sports begin their careers while in high school when they discover their passion and begin perfecting their talent and skills. A Map to the Sun shows exactly that by focusing on teenage girls who are part of their high school basketball team.
But the story doesn’t focus solely on the challenges these girls face when playing basketball. It also highlights how difficult it can be for teenagers to balance their friendships, grades, and passions. These challenges may lead to them wondering who they can and cannot trust.
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Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Carrie Soto was considered the best tennis player in the world. She was coached by her father and broke every record, staying at the top of the ranking every time. In 1988, after many sacrifices and having proven to be the best, she decides to retire. However, a few years later, she feels threatened by a new player who seems to be competing with her records.
Carrie Soto is Back focuses on Carrie’s return to the tennis court when everyone believes she should have stayed retired. Her father is back coaching her, but her body and her stamina may not be what they used to be. This return to the court makes her face people from her past, pushing her to swallow her pride and do everything she can to get back to the top.
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Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez
Furia takes place in Argentina when a girl living in the shadow of her brother’s rising-soccer-star shadow has to hide her true passion from her parents. Just like her brother, she is extremely good at soccer, her team admires her talent, and she qualifies for the South American tournament. La Furia, as they call her, dreams of getting a sports scholarship to a prestigious university.
However, she might not be able to achieve this dream. Her parents don’t approve of her passion and believe girls shouldn’t be playing soccer. The boy she used to be in love with comes back into town, presenting a distraction she doesn’t need. This story focuses on the fact that women in sports are sometimes denied their spot because of their ambition and old stereotypes.
This article was originally published on 8/4/23.
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