Bobbie Rosenfeld: The Olympian Who Could Do Everything

by Anne Dublin

Overview

Many sportswriters and broadcasters in this country agree that Bobbie Rosenfeld may be Canada's all-around greatest athlete of the twentieth century. Her love for all sports showed itself early. As a young girl she excelled in track and field, ice hockey, tennis, basketball and softball. At the 1928 Summer Olympics, held in Amsterdam, she won both gold and silver medals. But Bobbie's popularity was due to more than her athletic brilliance or, later, her skills as a sportwriter with the Globe & Mail. She was loved as much as anything for her strength of character-her decency, honesty and sense of fair play. Rich with historical photographs and context, Bobbie Rosenfeld: The Olympian Who Could Do Everything will appeal to sports fans of all ages.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781896764825
Publisher:	Second Story Press
Publication date:	01/01/2004
Pages:	148
Product dimensions:	9.00(w) x 7.50(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	12 - 13 Years

About the Author

Anne Dublin is a former teacher-librarian and award-winning author living in Toronto, Ontario. Her writing has won many honors and awards, including the Sydney Taylor Honor Book Award, and the American Library Association's Amelia Bloomer Project Recommended Feminist Read for Youth designation.

Table of Contents

	Introduction	IX
1	Beginnings	1
2	Growing Up in Barrie	6
3	High School Athlete	15
4	A Move to the Big City	20
5	Canada in the 1920s	26
6	The Complete Athlete	32
7	Working Girl	40
8	Women and the Olympics	44
9	Halifax Olympic Tryouts	49
10	Traveling to Amsterdam	53
11	Opening Ceremonies	60
12	Winner of the 100-Meter Race	64
13	The Good Sport	70
14	The Matchless Six	74
15	Triumphant Return	80
16	A Cruel Blow	86
17	Searching for a New Life	90
18	Canada in the 1930s	94
19	The End of an Era	101
20	Career Woman	106
21	"Sports Reel"	112
22	Canada in the 1940s and 1950s	117
23	Bobbie at Mid-Century	124
24	The Legacy of Bobbie Rosenfeld	130
	Timeline	135
	Further Reading	137
	Acknowledgements	139
	Bibliography	142
	Photo Credits	144
	Index	146

Editorial Reviews

"Rosenfeld, an exceptional individual who embodied humour, perseverance, and a sense of fairness and equality, achieved her accomplishments several decades ago. In chronicling Rosenfeldís life for todayís children, Dublin employs a tone and language which makes her story timeless. "

Canadian Bookseller - Carol-Anne Hoyte

Rosenfeld, an exceptional individual who embodied humour, perseverance, and a sense of fairness and equality, achieved her accomplishments several decades ago. In chronicling Rosenfeld's life for today's children, Dublin employs a tone and language which makes her story timeless.
— Carol-Anne Hoyte

Canadian Bookseller

Bobbie Rosenfeld and her family immigrated to Canada in 1905. Her parents were Russian Jews, and they both believed that with the fall of Czarist Russia, their homeland was becoming an extremely dangerous place to raise a family. They arrived in Halifax that same year and settled in the small town of Barrie. It was difficult for Bobbie's family because there were so few Jewish families in the small Canadian town; however, Bobbie became a popular commodity very quickly. She loved to play sports including hockey, softball, basketball, and track and field. Bobbie excelled at every sport she tried, but she was a naturally gifted runner. In 1928, the Olympic Committee decided to let women compete in track and field events, and Canada was going to send their best female athletes. Bobbie and her teammates returned to Canada with four Olympic medals. This book tells a wonderful story of an amazing athlete who is unfamiliar to most readers. Dublin discusses Bobbie's life including her career in sports and how she helped erase the stereotypes surrounding female athletes at the time. Dublin also provides pictures of Bobbie, her teammates, and her family throughout the book. The book sports a time line of Bobbie's life, acknowledgments, and photo credits. Students who are doing research on the Olympic games or former Olympic athletes, especially Canadians, might find this book extremely useful. VOYA CODES: 3Q 3P M J S (Readable without serious defects; Will appeal with pushing; Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12). 2004, Second Story Press, 148p.; Photos. Biblio. Further Reading. Chronology., Trade pb. Ages 11 to18.
—Jonatha Masters

VOYA