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    Young Pele: Soccer's First Star
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    Young Pele: Soccer's First Star
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    Young Pele: Soccer's First Star
    Ebook38 pages8 minutes

    Young Pele: Soccer's First Star

    By Lesa Cline-Ransome and James Ransome

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    HOW DID A POOR BOY named Edson—who kicked rocks down roads and dribbled balls made from rags—go on to become Pelé, the greatest soccer player of all time? While other kids memorized letters, Edson memorized the scores of soccer matches. And when Edson finally played in a youth soccer tournament in the town of Bauru, Brazil, he focused on only one thing from the moment the whistle blew: the goal.

     

    Here is the picture book biography of the boy who overcame tremendous odds to become the world champion soccer star Pelé.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRandom House Publishing Group
    Release dateApr 24, 2013
    ISBN9780307983572
    Author

    Lesa Cline-Ransome

    Lesa Cline-Ransome is the author of many picture books, including Young Pele: Soccer’s First Star and Light in the Darkness. She lives in Rhinebeck, New York, with her family.

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    Reviews for Young Pele

    3.5/5

    31 ratings11 reviews

    What did you think?

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      Pele always wanted to be a soccer star. When he put his mind and heart into it, he succeeded. This story shows the struggles that Pele went through to become who he is now. The illustrations were detailed to perfection, and really captured the story.
    • 2/5
      This was a very interesting book about the early life of the soccer player who came to be called Pele'. While it was great that it shows how young Edson (Pele's actual name) overcame economic hardships and being a struggling student to become a famous soccer player, There were a number of things I really didn't like about the book. I did not like at all how Edson's teachers treated him, and I'm not sure that the treatment, which in my estimation qualifies as child abuse, is appropriate for a children's book. This is particularly the case where the abuse is not dealt with. It seems like it was used for expositional "color." I also am not a excited about how they chose to include that Edson basically dropped out of school, suffering no repercussions from his family. These might be true facets of who Pele' was, but they felt like they were just thrown in, and no lasting results of this, if there were any were addressed. The Perma-bound School Library website lists it with a reading level: 5.0 and interest level: P-2 I'm not sure I agree with that. The reading level seems about on point, however, I think the interest level would go well beyond 2nd grade. I don't think I would be using this book in my class.
    • 3/5
      Overall this was a good biography. The main message of this book is to inform students about the famous soccer player, Pele. It also teaches children never to give up on their dreams. I really loved how the illustrator included his thoughts in the picture. For example, Pele was thinking about soccer scores while his classmates were thinking about math facts so in the picture there are random numbers and subtraction facts around him. This was a really unique way to illustrate what Pele is thinking. I also liked how the book was not only a biography but also talked about his family. For example Pele explains the role of his mother and father. This helps students understand the dynamics of an African American family and how they may be similar and/or different to their own. The one thing I wasn't too fond of is the lengthy text. I feel like the author could have done a better job separating it into different paragraphs and even different pages. This may make it easier for children to follow along and comprehend. Overall, this was an enjoyable biography.
    • 4/5
      Summary: As the title implies this book tells about the Brazilian soccer super star Pele. It however is not a typical biography. It only tells about the early years of his life and about his love for soccer. The book delves into the story of how he got his nickname Pele, how he began playing soccer in his first team and the struggles he phased because he was very poor, did not do well in school and his mother disapproved of his love for soccer because she wanted him to grow up to be a doctor or something of the like. At the end of the book Pele has discovered his dream and his mother accepts that he wants to play soccer. Review: As a children's book I would give this book 5 stars. The book is well written. The author makes Pele very relatable to children by telling the reader about how hard school was for Pele because he was not the typical student. The story focuses on themes like loyalty and friendship in terms that the children can understand. Finally overall it is a very entertaining book. It even gives cultural perspective because it tells about life in Brazil and in lower socioeconomic groups. As a biography I find the book lacking. The book gave very little information about Pele. It mostly focused on his love of soccer, but anyone who knows Pele would already know about his passion for the game he is the king of. I also disliked that it ended after without giving the reader the end of the story. If I had been reading this book without knowing anything about Pele before hand I would be confused as to why this soccer player was so important. The book does not mention any of his accomplishments as an adult to justify why it is important we know about his early experiences.
    • 4/5
      I liked this book for many reasons. One reason would be because the pictures were gorgeous. I love the way they were done. I like the water color look to them. Another reason I like this book was for the writing. I really enjoyed how the writer describe how he was thinking about and playing soccer. The big message of this story would be to never give up and always pursue your dreams.
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this book. I had never heard about this awesome young star, so I loved learning about a successful child prodigy! I really enjoyed the language the author used in the book. One of my favorite parts was when the author explain Edson day dreaming in class about scoring a goal. She put this paragraph in italics so the audience knew it was a thought. I can imagine reading that paragraph with enthusiasm to a group of young students! I also enjoyed the illustrations. They look like they were composed with paint. The very first page is a beautifully designed forrest with rich colors that automatically draw the audience in. The overall message of this story is to never give up on your dreams.
    • 3/5
      James Ransome tells the great story of the famous and amazing soccer player Edson Arantes do Nascimento also known as Pelé. This story takes us back to Pelé's younger days and shows how early on his love for soccer began. A good story that can be shared with the whole family.
    • 5/5
      In my opinion this is a great book. I liked the plot of the book. The story starts with Edson(Pele) forming a soccer team and easing money to buy shoes to play and ending with the team winning against a professional team. The organization of this story is great because it doesn't start talking about how famous Pele is and how many goals he scored. It starts describing his house, neighborhood and how humble he was as a child. I also really like the last page of the book where is talks about how Pele became the most famous soccer player in the world scoring over 1300 goals and a lot more impressing facts about him. The illustrations in this book are also very informative. They show when Pele was plying soccer without shoes as well as how he was scoring the goals. Even of you don't read the story you can still look at the pictures and understand the book. The main idea of this book is to let the readers know about Pele's childhood and how he was as humble as all of us before becoming what he is today.
    • 3/5
      Pele is not your average child. He was short in school, but loved playing soccer. It is an inspiring story and a great story to read.
    • 5/5
      I liked this book for two reasons. Those reasons are the way it is written and the illustrations used. The big message of this book is that no matter how hard or impossible something may seem never give up on your dreams. Young Pelé began with nothing more than a ball of rags for a soccer ball and played with no shoes on his feet. Yet, he never gave up and he persevered to become the greatest soccer player of all time. The writing in this book is clear and concise so it is easy for young readers to follow. Also the story is written in a way that flows with the reader and keeps them interested and entertained as it tells the tale of soccer’s true first star Pelé. The writing in this book is also quite action packed especially the descriptions used during the youth tournament soccer match for Pelé’s team. For example, “he bears down; he drives a kick to the right. The ball hits the goalpost, spins back, and flies through the goalie’s hands, straight into-Gooooooaaalllll!” This use of action verbs and the relation to the illustration keeps the reader excited to see what is going to happen next. This technique is helpful in keeping younger readers focused on the story as they feel they are a part of it.The illustrations used in this book are fantastic and fit perfectly with the written text to give the reader better perspective on the events unfolding. The illustrations are large and detailed focusing much of their attention on how Pelé is feeling and using facial expressions in the illustrations to emphasize those feelings. This technique helps younger readers to identify with the main character as well as giving them an inside look to what he is experiencing. For example, following the text “He stared straight ahead at the chalkboard as his teacher spoke, but his mind was miles away” there is an illustration of young Pelé with just a slight smile on his face and an otherwise blank expression showing that while he is physically in class his mind is somewhere else entirely. Also the illustration of the youth soccer game is well drawn out and creates a scene of action as the reader reads the text and feels like they are watching the game live. These illustrations in combination with the great writing in this book make it a great choice for young readers because it will keep them entertained and focused while telling a true story.
    • 3/5
      Edson was nicknamed "Pele" by his teammates on his soccer team. Pele was a child of poverty who rose to fame by being a very talented and well-known soccer player throughout Brazil. In elementary school he always got in trouble because he never focused on what he was supposed to be focusing on, everything he thought was about soccer. He eventually gave up school altogether to play soccer. His teammates and himself came up with ways to earn money to buy team shirts, shorts, and socks. They still couldn't afford shoes, but when the town's mayor announced that he'd be sponsoring a soccer tournament for teams with proper uniforms, fathers of the players offered help to purchase their shoes so they could be eligible. He became team captain because he was hardest player on the team and because he had so much knowledge for soccer. He scored the winning goal for the tournament. The author's note at the end explains his life as the greatest soccer player world wide. This biography tells the reader that no matter the circumstances, if you have a dream, you should reach for the stars, going above and beyond to make your dream come true. In the classroom, this book could be used when teaching the importance of biographies and it could extend to a writing lesson where students could write about a dream of theirs and how they could turn their dream into reality. The beautiful oil painted illustrations are sure to keep the readers attention.