The Story of the Olympic Games, a go-to for a kid’s view on the games

The Story of the Olympic Games is a bold title for a book that’s geared to upper elementary through middle school readers. As of 2021, the Olympic Games have been around since 1896 and consist of 28 editions that have spanned the globe. Older readers are rightly questioning how a book could encompass such a massive event on arguably the biggest athletic stage in the world. Certainly, key moments would be missed and readers who know the Olympics might quibble about how they couldn’t include this or that. The fact that The Story of the Olympic Games is an engaging book to read is a testament to the adage, ‘brevity is the soul of wit’.

First off, young readers will love the fact that the book is loaded with colors, a variety of graphics, photographs and posters from the games, and shaped blobs of text that beg to be shared. There’s a very brief one-page explanation of the Olympic Games and their history. However, history can be complicated and technically they started in old school Greece when they were still wearing togas and stuff, did they? Yes, you are correct young reader. However, in 1892 Pierre de Coubertin thought that a modern version of the games would be a great way to highlight what today’s athletes could accomplish. Two years later the first edition of the modern Olympic Games started in Athens. They were called I Olympiad and they were still funded by the host city, just like they are today.

Back then Athens sold stamps to raise money. That’s today’s elementary school fundraiser equivalent of Jump Rope for Heart, or possibly selling magazines subscriptions, depending on the time of year.

Each Olympic Games is given two pages to highlight some of the photographs, promotional materials, or equipment that were needed to pull off the games. There was the time when a starter’s pistol was first used during track and field events and a camera was used to determine the winner in those really close races. Both of those things happened in London, 1948, which was the first Olympic Games held in 12 years due to WWII.

After that two-page overview, the next two pages have a page that is dedicated to two people who were memorable in that year’s games. Johnny Weissmuller dominated the swimming competition in 1924 and Harold Abrahams from Great Britain could have jumped or sprinted but chose the latter of the two. Archie Hahn from the 1904 Olympics turned professional after those games and ran in various stunts at county fairs. At one of those fairs, he ran against a racehorse for 50 yards and won. There’s no mention of what became of his competitor.

All of the content is presented in easily digestible blocks that consist of five to seven sentences. These are accompanied by a picture or illustration of some sort which makes the information even easier to read, as well as remember. The quality in The Story of the Olympic Games is on par with the National Geographic Kids books that set the standard in what young readers expect from their non-fiction text. Instead, the book is from Welbeck Publishing. It’s an officially licensed Olympic product too.

This is a book that makes kids curious about the Olympic Games, and in this streaming age where lots of kids have never even seen a commercial on television, that’s saying something. For example, our 11-year-old asked us if we could watch the Olympics. The Story of the Olympic Games is a book that elementary book reports were made for. It presents enough information from the macro that they can do a wide report, but makes them interested in and provides opportunities for further research if they want to dig deeper.

The Story of the Olympic Games is by the International Olympic Committee and available on Welbeck Children’s Books.

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