Tennis legend Billie Jean King gets a biography aimed at the youngest readers in this board book from the New York Times Bestselling Who Was? series.
The engaging, straightforward book covers her life from childhood through her rise to stardom and beyond. It emphasizes her work for women’s equality in sports from an early age, and how she eventually sought to address many forms of inequality. One spread describes her realization that everyone at a big tennis match was “white, like her. She knew it wasn’t right to leave so many people out.” Another states, “People found out that she was gay and treated her unfairly for it.” This hurt, but she didn’t let it stop her, and “Her bravery helped other people feel comfortable being who they are.” Later pages describe how her stardom helped her change things, and the illustrations show an increasing diversity of skin tones among fans and other players (along with one fan whose hair is styled with a very queer-looking undercut).
The amount of text and complexity of some of the words and phrases feel a little advanced for board-book-aged children (will they really know what it means to be a “professional” athlete?), which seems to be a trend among board books, but this is an inspiring introduction to the sports hero, and the board book format might ensure the volume stays intact as children grow into it.
Backmatter includes a few more details of her life plus a photograph.
