Unstoppable: How Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team Defeated Army

Gr 1-5--In 1912, the Carlisle Indian School football team defeated Army, the U.S. Military Academy team at West Point. It was an exciting game, which pitted the quick, nimble players from Carlisle against the strong defense of the West Point Cadets. Detailed pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations reveal the excitement of the Carlisle win and Jim Thorpe's athletic prowess, but also show the pain that Native children suffered when they were forced to attend boarding schools where the goal was to strip them of their culture--to change their dress and forbid them to speak their languages or practice their religion. The back matter reveals the more disturbing aspects of this true story--that many children died at the residential schools; that Thorpe had to give up the Olympic medals he won when officials learned that he had played professional baseball; and that Carlisle's famous coach, "Pop" Warner, was fired from Carlisle because of abusive behavior. This book shows that there is much to admire about Jim Thorpe and his career, without whitewashing history. VERDICT A first choice for nonfiction picture book biography collections.--Myra Zarnowski, City University of New York