Product Description

Leah Lauber's true adventure following the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team, as a fan and 12-year old Junior Reporter for the St. Petersburg (FL) Times, as the Team prepares for, and ultimately wins, the history-making 1999 Women's World Cup!

The U.S. Women's National Soccer Team proved that dreams DO come true, IF you love what you do, AND you work really hard at it! My unlikely-but-true story following the Team further proves that dreams come true . . .

The 1999 Women's World Cup is widely regarded as a milestone in women's sports and "Soccer Dreams" takes the reader on a journey any sports fan could only dream about - not only meeting her heroes at their finest moment, but interviewing them for one of the country's best newspapers. Leah's incredible adventure takes the reader to games, training sessions, into the locker room and under the press tent after the ultimate victory over China.

Illustrated with more than 200 color photos throughout the book, "Soccer Dreams" will inspire readers of all ages to follow their own dreams, using not only the example of the National Team, but in a much smaller way, Leah's story as she overcomes setbacks and obstacles to witness sports history.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #970962 in Books
• Published on: 2003-09-10
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 92 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780974548005
• Condition: USED - VERY GOOD
• Notes:
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
A clear labor of love for Lauber, who includes an explanation of her own love of the game. -- Kent McDill, Chicago Daily Herald, September 25, 2003

A dream come true. A remarkable story. Great lesson for everyone: with hard work, you can achieve anything. Highly recommended. -- Sharyn McGinty, In the Library Reviews, May 2004

Fun example of Hollywood magic in real life. . .this would only happen in the movies. . . interesting stories and great photos. -- Brian Harrington, Touchline (publication for Florida Youth Soccer Association), September, 2003

Great book you put together - you should be proud of it! -- Kristine Lilly, World Cup Champion, pre-publication review, 2001

Soccer Dreams is Excellent! Leah is going to be an exceptional journalist when she grows up! -- Tracy Ducar, World Cup Champion, February 2004

Soccer Dreams will find a good place in our library among the many books on the unforgettable Women's World Cup. -- Markus Siegler, Director of Communications, Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), December, 2003

Thanks for a copy of "Soccer Dreams." I enjoyed it. Dream BIG and have fun. I wish you the best! -- Shannon MacMillan, World Cup Champion, pre-publication review, 2001

The book reveals a real talent for good writing . . . a true sports adventure . . . a Christmas gift wish come true. -- Alan Caruba, Bookviews.com, November, 2003

What a fantastic book. I very much enjoyed reading this account from a young person's perspective and re-living the moments. -- April Heinrichs, U.S Women's National Team Head Coach, April 2004

Your book brought back fond memories of a great season! -- Coach Tony DiCicco, World Cup Champion, pre-publication review, 2001

From the Inside Flap
There are 90,185 people on their feet in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. It's steaming hot - more than 100 degrees on the field, and the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team has been playing against the Chinese National Team to decide the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup Championship. Everyone in the stadium is nervous . . . exhausted . . . excited! People all over the world are watching on television, hoping their favorite team will win. After 120 minutes of scoreless action and nine penalty kicks, the shootout to decide the Women’s World Cup Champion is tied 4-4.

The United States has one kick left. Brandi Chastain charges the ball and nails a left-footer into the upper right corner of the goal, just past the keeper’s hands. Brandi rips off her jersey, drops to her knees, and celebrates her dream-come-true. The stadium erupts in cheers. Brandi’s teammates sprint towards her to join the celebration. They don't care how hot it is, how long they’ve been playing, or how tired they are. They are the World Champions ! ! !

I was there to witness sports history! In the stadium . . .On the field . . . In the locker room . . . Under the press tent . . . This is my true story of how, I, a twelve-year old junior reporter for the St. Petersburg Times, had my own dream come true, writing my way to L.A. . . .

About the Author
Leah Lauber, today a 16-year-old, has been playing soccer since she was seven. Her love of the game led to an interest in the United States Women’s National Team. Attending her first game in 1996, Leah was hooked when the players signed autographs after the game for many of the 2,000 fans. She has since attended the National Team’s training sessions, clinics staged by players, and she has seen, in person, the National Team play ten times.

Among those ten games, all victories for the United States, Leah has witnessed four of the most memorable matches played in the United States in the team’s history:
• The 1996 Olympics Gold Medal game in Atlanta when the women beat China 2-1, with more than 76,000 spectators, setting an attendance record for any women’s sporting event in history.
•   A friendly game in Orlando against Brazil in May, 1999, when superstar Mia Hamm broke the international career scoring record, for both men and women, with her 108th goal.
• The 1999 Women’s World Cup Quarterfinals against Germany in Washington D.C., a dramatic 3-2 come-from-behind victory.
• The history-making 1999 Women’s World Cup Finals against China in Los Angeles, when Brandi Chastain’s penalty kick sealed the championship before a record-setting 90,185 spectators.

Leah’s interest in writing led to a one-year assignment as a junior reporter for the X-Press Section of Florida’s largest newspaper, the St. Petersburg Times, with circulation exceeding 300,000. During that period, Leah filed more than ten articles, including concert and movie reviews, and a profile on a schoolmate who competed in the Irish Dancing World Championships.

Five of her feature stories, however, focused on women’s soccer:
• An interview with U.S. National Team member Danielle Fotopoulos.
• "Soccer Diaries," which described Leah’s soccer weekend, her own team’s regional tournament as well as a National Team "friendly" match in Tampa, Florida.
• A Women’s World Cup preview.
• An article on "what it takes" to play on the National Team.
• Her description of her trip to L.A. for the Women’s World Cup Finals.

Leah had the great opportunity to interview and/or collect comments from most of the players on the U.S. National Team in 1999, either one-on-one, or in media conferences she attended with the international press.

Leah is an Honor Roll junior at St. Petersburg Catholic High School in St. Petersburg, Florida and has attended the Poynter Institute’s Summer Writing Camp. She is currently preparing for her tenth season of recreational soccer and also plays for her high school team. In her spare time, Leah takes pottery courses and volunteers during the summers at The Arts Center, St. Petersburg, as a teacher’s aid for summer campers.

Customer Reviews

A True Story Well Told
When I got ready to read Soccer Dreams, I wasn't sure if it was something that would interest me. I'm not much of a sports person and know almost nothing about soccer. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I didn't need to know anything about sports at all to enjoy the book.

While the book is about 12-year-old Leah's experiences reporting on the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team for the St. Petersburg Times, it is also about a girl following her dreams. Leah takes the reader with her as she applies to be a reporter for the newspaper's X-Press Team -- a select group of kids who write a special section of the paper on various topics for other kids. A soccer player since she was seven, Leah is able to meet the players, cover the team's practices and be there for their victory at the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup Championship. Like any good book, the story has its ups and downs, its victories and defeats, but it is real life, and seeing it through Leah's eyes makes it all the more real.

I very much enjoyed reading the book, as well as seeing the letters and newspaper columns she wrote, the tickets she saved, and the color photographs her father took of her adventures. Her writing style is clear and natural and she knows how to tell a good story. If she writes like this now, I can't wait to see what she will do in the future!

What a kick!
What an exciting book is SOCCER DREAMS! The energy, the crowds, the pace, the thrill of the sport -- all leap off the pages in full color. You can almost hear the sounds.

Reporter Lauber's writing keeps up the pace, telling the history of a momentous era in Women's Sports:- taking us behind the scenes, into the bleachers & to the press conferences to rub shoulders with the best reporters. & we get to meet each member of the 1999 Women's World Champions too!

SOCCER DREAMS is not only a great book about the sport, women athletes & the long haul to success, it is about a youngster's enthusiasm, passion, persistence...& success!

Very well done & the perfect gift for your favorite children, students & sports fans.

Rebeccasreads highly recommends SOCCER DREAMS for all, no matter their age or their passion, & do check out Rebecca's interview with this young author/reporter.

Excellent Reporting, Brilliant Book!
As an author, I meet many, many people who tell me, "Oh, I'd love to write a book!" But they never do it. They need to take lessons from Leah Lauber. She wrote a book chronicling her amazing journey following the extraordinary accomplishments of the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team. Passionate about soccer, Leah attended many of the history-making soccer matches not just as a fan, but also as a reporter. She interviewed her role models: Mia Hamm, Lorrie Fair, Cindy Parlow, Briana Scurry, and many other team members. Leah incorporated these interviews and game coverage into articles she wrote for Florida's largest newspaper, the St. Petersburg Times.

These accomplishments are admirable. But there's more to this story ... Leah did all this when she was just 12 years old!!! By following her twin passions for writing and soccer, Leah first achieved her dreams of meeting and talking with her heroes, attending the Women's World Cup, and reporting for a major newspaper. Then she reached her dream of writing a book. And what a book! Colorful photos and vivid writing truly bring women's soccer to life.

As you read "Soccer Dreams," you'll get caught up in the excitement of the sport and the thrill of the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team victories -- whether or not you're a fan. Leah's book makes you feel like you're right there in the middle of all the action. The book brims with added bonuses. Page 6 features reproductions of autographs Leah obtained from members of the national teams from both the U.S. and Norway. Section 3 is an absolute goldmine -- here's where you'll find Leah's unedited interviews with the national soccer team players.

Get this book for your daughters, it will inspire them to follow and reach their dreams. Get this book if you love soccer. Get it if you enjoy the thrill of a game, a good read, or a close look at sports history. I give this book 5 stars plus. An inspiring, motivating masterpiece!

-- Graciela Sholander (...)