Shaun White » (Illustrate)

Born with a severe heart condition, Shaun White almost didn't live past his first birthday. But surgery saved him, and not much later, young Shaun began following his older brother Jesse to skate parks and half-pipes, begging to be given a try on the board. Jesse resisted, but eventually gave in to his brother's demands.

Shaun quickly fell in love with the thrill of riding, speeding around on his knees before he had the balance to stand. Soon, Shaun got interested in snowboarding. Taught by his father, Shaun found he had a natural talent for snowboarding that surpassed anything else he'd ever done. Before long he was competing in and winning amateur snowboard competitions, and he went pro by his thirteenth birthday.

From there began Shaun's journey to becoming one of the world's most accomplished snowboarders, and one of the most famous athletes of the extreme sports world. He swept the awards at the annual X Games, winning as both a snowboarder and a skateboarder, and garnering the acclaim of fans worldwide, including pro skating phenomenon Tony Hawk.

A sensation to extreme sports fans before he even graduated high school, Shaun faced his biggest challenge in 2006 as a member of the U.S. Olympic Snowboarding team. Watched by an international audience, Shaun could either get big air or crash land, and the outcome would determine the rest of his life.

About the Author:
Jeff C. Young, a graduate of Ball State University, has worked as a reporter for Florida newspapers and as a school media specialist

Children's Literature

Both the book and the athlete have a lot of rough edges, but that may not deter young people who are fans of extreme sports and the athletes who practice them. Snowboarding is the fastest growing winter sport in the United States. There are predictions that by 2015, there will be more snowboarders than skiers in the United States. Shaun White is among the best. He survived double-bypass heart surgery as an infant but began winning snowboarding contests by the time he was seven. Soon he would compete internationally in both snowboarding and skateboarding. He had the full support of his parents and grandparents who had participated in extreme sports of their own. White is not always particularly articulate, but he is perpetually enthusiastic. The book does not flow easily, bouncing from White the competitor to the history of skateboarding and snowboarding to a section about skateboarding star Tony Hawk. But the photos are fun and dramatic and the back material includes an index, timeline, sources and resources, enabling youngsters to turn their favorite pastime into a research paper. Reviewer: Karen Leggett

First Descent     11
The History of Snowboarding     26
The Flying Tomato     42
Olympic Glory     55
The History of Skateboarding     61
Two Sports     76
The Future     91
Timeline     96
Sources     99
Bibliography     105
Web sites     109
Index     111