Get Ready for the Paris Olympics!

Get Ready for the Paris Olympics! These books will give you a history of the Olympic games, individual and team achievement, and the history of Paris, France.

Updated May 23, 2024
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Fond du Lac Public Library
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Today we die a little! : the inimitable Emil Zátopek, the greatest Olympic runner of all time
Askwith, Richard
Paper Book
"We are different, in essence, from other men. If you want to enjoy something, run 100 meters. If you want to experience something, run a marathon." -- Emil Zápek For a decade after the Second World War, Emil Zápek -- "the Czech locomotive" -- redefined the...
Paris and her cathedrals
Bloch, R. Howard
Paper Book
"So infectious is R. Howard Bloch's passion for his subject that even those unable to do the traveling required will find in Paris and Her Cathedrals an inspiring guide to these time-hallowed masterpieces of medieval culture." --Colin Jones, author of Paris and The Great Nation ...
726.64 Bloch 2022
The boys in the boat : nine Americans and their epic quest for gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics
Brown, Daniel James
Paper Book
Now a Major Motion Picture Directed by George Clooney The #1 New York Times-bestselling story about the American Olympic rowing triumph in Nazi Germany--from the author of Facing the Mountain. For readers of Unbroken, out of the depths of the...

797.123 Brown 2013

City of light : the making of modern Paris
Christiansen, Rupert
Paper Book
A sparkling account of the nineteenth-century reinvention of Paris as the most beautiful, exciting city in the world In 1853, French emperor Louis Napoleon inaugurated a vast and ambitious program of public works in Paris, directed by Georges-Eugè Haussmann, the...
944.361 Christiansen 2018
Coming up for air
Daley, Tom
Paper Book
A deeply personal and inspiring memoir from the celebrated Olympic gold medal diver and LGBTQ+ advocate, who is set to make history in his fifth Olympic games in Paris 2024 Tom Daley is one of the most beloved athletes of our time,  garnering Olympic diving medals and...
797.24 Daley Daley 2022
How Paris became Paris : the invention of the modern city
DeJean, Joan E.
Paper Book
At the beginning of the seventeenth century, Paris was known for isolated monuments but had not yet put its brand on urban space. Like other European cities, it was still emerging from its medieval past. But in a mere century Paris would be transformed into the modern and mythic city we know...
944.361 D368 2014
Olympic pride, American prejudice : the untold story of 18 African Americans who defied Jim Crow and Adolf Hitler to compete in the 1936 Berlin Olympics
Draper, Deborah Riley
Paper Book
Discover the astonishing, inspirational, and largely unknown true story of the eighteen African American athletes who competed in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, defying the racism of both Nazi Germany and the Jim Crow South. Set against the turbulent backdrop of a segregated...
796.48 Draper 2020
Finish strong : a father's code and a son's path
Ebner, Nate
Paper Book
The inspiring story of Nate Ebner's bond with his unconventional father and its remarkable consequences Nate Ebner and his father were inseparable. From an early age, they worked side-by-side in the family junkyard, where part of the job was dispensing citizen's justice to...
796.33 Ebner Ebner 2021
Going for Wisconsin gold : stories of our state olympians
Garcia, Jessie
Paper Book
U-S-A , U-S-A is a familiar refrain heard in every Olympics, but truly it could be Wis-con-sin! Since pioneering hurdler Alvin Kraenzlein got his start here in the 1890s, the Badger State has nurtured, trained, or schooled more than 400 Olympic athletes in a vast array of...
796.48 Garcia 2016
The games : a global history of the Olympics
Goldblatt, David
Paper Book
The definitive sports and social history of the modern Olympic games--by a New York Times best-selling sportswriter. A Boston Globe Best Book of 2016 A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of 2016 For millions of people around the world, the...
796.4809 G564 2016
The Sixth Man : a memoir
Iguodala, Andre
Paper Book
**The Instant National Bestseller** The standout memoir from NBA powerhouse Andre Iguodala, the indomitable sixth man of the Golden State Warriors. Fresh off the Warriors' fourth Finals win in eight years, Andre Iguodala long has been one of the most admired players...
796.323 Iguodala Iguodala 2019
Go, Gwen, Go: A Family's Journey to Olympic Gold
Jorgensen, Nancy
Paper Book
Narrated in alternating voices by mother Nancy and sister Elizabeth, Go, Gwen, Go: A Midwest Family's Journey to Olympic Gold is an inspiring story about Olympian Gwen Jorgensen and her family. This memoir introduces readers to a young woman of modest athletic achievements who uses desire and...
796.4257 Jorgensen 2019
Nazi games : the Olympics of 1936
Large, David Clay.
Paper Book
Athletics and politics collide in a critical event for Nazi Germany and the contemporary world. The torch relay -- that staple of Olympic pageantry -- first opened the summer games in 1936 in Berlin. Proposed by the Nazi Propaganda Ministry, the relay was to carry the symbolism of a new...
796.48 L323 2007
The watermen : the birth of American swimming and one young man's fight to capture Olympic gold
Loynd, Michael
Paper Book
The feel-good underdog story of the first American swimmer to win Olympic gold, set against the turbulent rebirth of the modern Games, that "bring[s] to life an inspiring figure and illuminate[s] an overlooked chapter in America's sports history" (The Wall Street Journal) ...
797.2109 Daniels Loynd 2022
Path lit by lightning : the life of Jim Thorpe
Maraniss, David
Paper Book
A riveting new biography of America's greatest all-around athlete by the bestselling author of the classic biography When Pride Still Mattered. Jim Thorpe rose to world fame as a mythic talent who excelled at every sport. He won gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon...
796.092 Thorpe Maraniss 2022
Dream team : how Michael, Magic, Larry, Charles, and the greatest team of all time conquered the world and changed the game of basketball forever
McCallum, Jack
Paper Book
They were the Beatles of basketball, the Mercury Seven in sneakers.   In Dream Team, acclaimed sports journalist Jack McCallum delivers the untold story of the greatest team ever assembled: the 1992 U.S. Olympic Men's Basketball Team that captivated the world, kindled the...
796.323 M124d 2012
Fire on the track : Betty Robinson and the triumph of the early Olympic women
Montillo, Roseanne
Paper Book
The inspiring and irresistible true story of the women who broke barriers and finish-line ribbons in pursuit of Olympic Gold When Betty Robinson assumed the starting position at the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam, she was participating in what was only her fourth-ever organized...
796.42 Montillo 2017
Bravey : chasing dreams, befriending pain, and other big ideas
Pappas, Alexi
Paper Book
The Olympic runner, actress, filmmaker and writer Alexi Pappas shares what she's learned about confidence, self-reliance, mental health, embracing pain, and achieving your dreams. NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY REAL SIMPLE * "Heartbreaking and hilarious."-...
796.42 Pappas Pappas 2021
France : an adventure history
Robb, Graham
Paper Book
Beginning with the Roman army's first recorded encounter with the Gauls and ending in the era of Emmanuel Macron, France takes readers on an endlessly entertaining journey through French history. Frequently hilarious, always surprising, Graham Robb's France combines the stylistic versatility of a...

944 Robb 2022

An illustrated history of the Olympics
Schaap, Dick
Paper Book
796.48 Sch1
Triumph : the untold story of Jesse Owens and Hitler's Olympics
Schaap, Jeremy.
Paper Book
From the ESPN national correspondent and author of the New York Times bestseller Cinderella Man comes the remarkable behind-the-scenes story of a defining moment in sports and world history. In 1936, against a backdrop of swastikas flying and a storm troopers goose-stepping, an...
796.42 Ow2ys
Victory. Stand! : raising my fist for justice
Smith, Tommie
Paper Book
On October 16, 1968, during the medal ceremony at the Mexico City Olympics, Tommie Smith, the gold medal winner in the 200-meter sprint, and John Carlos, the bronze medal winner, stood on the podium in black socks and raised their black-gloved fists to protest racial injustice inflicted upon...
796.42 Smith Smith 2022 Teen nonfiction

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