Close Modal

Sports Are Fun!

Illustrated by Felicia Whaley
Paperback
6"W x 9"H | 4 oz | 96 per carton
On sale May 13, 2025 | 48 Pages | 9780593571705
Age 7-9 years
Reading Level: Fountas & Pinnell G
Scripps National Spelling Bee champ, New York Times bestselling author, and Sports Illustrated Sports Kid of the Year Zaila Avant-garde shares her love of sports in this level 1 Step Into Reading book. Perfect for children just beginning to read.

Be a soccer star. Kick, kick, score! Bounce a basketball. Bounce, bounce, soar!

New readers will find playful encouragement in this easy reader that sings out about the joy of playing sports. Wth ample rhyme and helpful repetition, Zaila Avante-garde takes readers on a boisterous romp through the wide world of sports, showing cheerful scenes of baseball, swimming, running, gymnastics, and more.

Step 1 Readers feature big type and easy words for children who know the alphabet and are eager to begin reading. Rhyme and rhythmic text paired with picture clues help children decode the story.
ZAILA AVANT-GARDE is a multi-talented powerhouse and a New York Times bestselling author, with success springing from all her endeavors. She was named SportsKid of the Year 2021 by Sports Illustrated Kids.

Hailing from New Orleans, Louisiana, she won the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee, making her the first African-American to win in almost 100 years of the competition. Avant-garde landed on her winning word, murraya—a type of tree—by associating the word with famous comedian Bill Murray, who surprised her by phoning in during her appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Avant-garde’s spelling triumph is just one entry on a very impressive resume. Along with competing in spelling bees for two years, Avant-garde holds two Guinness World Records for her basketball prowess. She holds the records for the most bounce juggles in one minute (four basketballs) and most basketballs dribbled simultaneously by one person (six basketballs).

Her success has been celebrated by the likes of Barack and Michelle Obama, LeBron James, and Dr. Jill Biden, who attended the bee. Since winning the Bee, Zaila has appeared in a cameo role in Netflix’s “HUSTLE”, as well as NBA on TNT, and Peacock’s “Kid’s Tonight Show”. You can also see her displaying her basketball skills in brand campaigns for Carnival Cruise Lines, BYJU, Xbox, and Gymshark. View titles by Zaila Avant-garde
FELICIA WHALEY is a children’s book illustrator currently residing in Oak Park, IL. She obtained a BFA in illustration and design from the Art Institute of Chicago. It was there she found a love for illustrating for children, creating characters that she wished she had seen growing up. Learn more about Felicia's work at feliciawhaley.com and follow her on Instagram at @creativegal28. View titles by Felicia Whaley
Available for sale exclusive:
•     Afghanistan
•     Aland Islands
•     Albania
•     Algeria
•     Andorra
•     Angola
•     Anguilla
•     Antarctica
•     Antigua/Barbuda
•     Argentina
•     Armenia
•     Aruba
•     Australia
•     Austria
•     Azerbaijan
•     Bahamas
•     Bahrain
•     Bangladesh
•     Barbados
•     Belarus
•     Belgium
•     Belize
•     Benin
•     Bermuda
•     Bhutan
•     Bolivia
•     Bonaire, Saba
•     Bosnia Herzeg.
•     Botswana
•     Bouvet Island
•     Brazil
•     Brit.Ind.Oc.Ter
•     Brit.Virgin Is.
•     Brunei
•     Bulgaria
•     Burkina Faso
•     Burundi
•     Cambodia
•     Cameroon
•     Canada
•     Cape Verde
•     Cayman Islands
•     Centr.Afr.Rep.
•     Chad
•     Chile
•     China
•     Christmas Islnd
•     Cocos Islands
•     Colombia
•     Comoro Is.
•     Congo
•     Cook Islands
•     Costa Rica
•     Croatia
•     Cuba
•     Curacao
•     Cyprus
•     Czech Republic
•     Dem. Rep. Congo
•     Denmark
•     Djibouti
•     Dominica
•     Dominican Rep.
•     Ecuador
•     Egypt
•     El Salvador
•     Equatorial Gui.
•     Eritrea
•     Estonia
•     Ethiopia
•     Falkland Islnds
•     Faroe Islands
•     Fiji
•     Finland
•     France
•     Fren.Polynesia
•     French Guinea
•     Gabon
•     Gambia
•     Georgia
•     Germany
•     Ghana
•     Gibraltar
•     Greece
•     Greenland
•     Grenada
•     Guadeloupe
•     Guam
•     Guatemala
•     Guernsey
•     Guinea Republic
•     Guinea-Bissau
•     Guyana
•     Haiti
•     Heard/McDon.Isl
•     Honduras
•     Hong Kong
•     Hungary
•     Iceland
•     India
•     Indonesia
•     Iran
•     Iraq
•     Ireland
•     Isle of Man
•     Israel
•     Italy
•     Ivory Coast
•     Jamaica
•     Japan
•     Jersey
•     Jordan
•     Kazakhstan
•     Kenya
•     Kiribati
•     Kuwait
•     Kyrgyzstan
•     Laos
•     Latvia
•     Lebanon
•     Lesotho
•     Liberia
•     Libya
•     Liechtenstein
•     Lithuania
•     Luxembourg
•     Macau
•     Macedonia
•     Madagascar
•     Malawi
•     Malaysia
•     Maldives
•     Mali
•     Malta
•     Marshall island
•     Martinique
•     Mauritania
•     Mauritius
•     Mayotte
•     Mexico
•     Micronesia
•     Minor Outl.Ins.
•     Moldavia
•     Monaco
•     Mongolia
•     Montenegro
•     Montserrat
•     Morocco
•     Mozambique
•     Myanmar
•     Namibia
•     Nauru
•     Nepal
•     Netherlands
•     New Caledonia
•     New Zealand
•     Nicaragua
•     Niger
•     Nigeria
•     Niue
•     Norfolk Island
•     North Korea
•     North Mariana
•     Norway
•     Oman
•     Pakistan
•     Palau
•     Palestinian Ter
•     Panama
•     PapuaNewGuinea
•     Paraguay
•     Peru
•     Philippines
•     Pitcairn Islnds
•     Poland
•     Portugal
•     Puerto Rico
•     Qatar
•     Reunion Island
•     Romania
•     Russian Fed.
•     Rwanda
•     S. Sandwich Ins
•     Saint Martin
•     Samoa,American
•     San Marino
•     SaoTome Princip
•     Saudi Arabia
•     Senegal
•     Serbia
•     Seychelles
•     Sierra Leone
•     Singapore
•     Sint Maarten
•     Slovakia
•     Slovenia
•     Solomon Islands
•     Somalia
•     South Africa
•     South Korea
•     South Sudan
•     Spain
•     Sri Lanka
•     St Barthelemy
•     St. Helena
•     St. Lucia
•     St. Vincent
•     St.Chr.,Nevis
•     St.Pier,Miquel.
•     Sth Terr. Franc
•     Sudan
•     Suriname
•     Svalbard
•     Swaziland
•     Sweden
•     Switzerland
•     Syria
•     Tadschikistan
•     Taiwan
•     Tanzania
•     Thailand
•     Timor-Leste
•     Togo
•     Tokelau Islands
•     Tonga
•     Trinidad,Tobago
•     Tunisia
•     Turkey
•     Turkmenistan
•     Turks&Caicos Is
•     Tuvalu
•     US Virgin Is.
•     USA
•     Uganda
•     Ukraine
•     Unit.Arab Emir.
•     United Kingdom
•     Uruguay
•     Uzbekistan
•     Vanuatu
•     Vatican City
•     Venezuela
•     Vietnam
•     Wallis,Futuna
•     West Saharan
•     Western Samoa
•     Yemen
•     Zambia
•     Zimbabwe

additional book photo
additional book photo
additional book photo

About

Scripps National Spelling Bee champ, New York Times bestselling author, and Sports Illustrated Sports Kid of the Year Zaila Avant-garde shares her love of sports in this level 1 Step Into Reading book. Perfect for children just beginning to read.

Be a soccer star. Kick, kick, score! Bounce a basketball. Bounce, bounce, soar!

New readers will find playful encouragement in this easy reader that sings out about the joy of playing sports. Wth ample rhyme and helpful repetition, Zaila Avante-garde takes readers on a boisterous romp through the wide world of sports, showing cheerful scenes of baseball, swimming, running, gymnastics, and more.

Step 1 Readers feature big type and easy words for children who know the alphabet and are eager to begin reading. Rhyme and rhythmic text paired with picture clues help children decode the story.

Creators

ZAILA AVANT-GARDE is a multi-talented powerhouse and a New York Times bestselling author, with success springing from all her endeavors. She was named SportsKid of the Year 2021 by Sports Illustrated Kids.

Hailing from New Orleans, Louisiana, she won the 2021 Scripps National Spelling Bee, making her the first African-American to win in almost 100 years of the competition. Avant-garde landed on her winning word, murraya—a type of tree—by associating the word with famous comedian Bill Murray, who surprised her by phoning in during her appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Avant-garde’s spelling triumph is just one entry on a very impressive resume. Along with competing in spelling bees for two years, Avant-garde holds two Guinness World Records for her basketball prowess. She holds the records for the most bounce juggles in one minute (four basketballs) and most basketballs dribbled simultaneously by one person (six basketballs).

Her success has been celebrated by the likes of Barack and Michelle Obama, LeBron James, and Dr. Jill Biden, who attended the bee. Since winning the Bee, Zaila has appeared in a cameo role in Netflix’s “HUSTLE”, as well as NBA on TNT, and Peacock’s “Kid’s Tonight Show”. You can also see her displaying her basketball skills in brand campaigns for Carnival Cruise Lines, BYJU, Xbox, and Gymshark. View titles by Zaila Avant-garde
FELICIA WHALEY is a children’s book illustrator currently residing in Oak Park, IL. She obtained a BFA in illustration and design from the Art Institute of Chicago. It was there she found a love for illustrating for children, creating characters that she wished she had seen growing up. Learn more about Felicia's work at feliciawhaley.com and follow her on Instagram at @creativegal28. View titles by Felicia Whaley

Photos

additional book photo
additional book photo
additional book photo
Penguin Random House Comics Retail