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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
As an Olympics junkie, I just had to check this out. (I even took a grad course in the history of the Olympics) Because we start school July 30, I also wanted to read it to decide how many copies to have ready in the library. I agree with other posters that the Olympics part was the most interesting, and the "mystery" was definitely secondary, and not really that necessary.
Once you get over the somewhat contrived situation, the main thing is that the book does a pretty good job of describing competitions, security, the Olympics, etc. You do have to read it noting that you're being subjected to Feinstein's biases. (Obviously, he thinks the opening ceremonies are too long, he took an unnecessary dig at Omaha, still criticizing the Atlanta Olympics, must be a big Coach K and Mark Alarie fan)
I felt the book could have done with some tighter editing, maybe because they raced to get it out before the Olympics, or do they not give kids enough credit. It would have been less confusing with only one character named "Bobby", and there's too much mention of the names of the different agents, sports reps, etc. On p. 109, they're eating at "Spaghetti Works", but on page 117 it's properly named as "Spaghetti Factory".
Was Feinstein being prescient when he described Ann Curry appearing to be nervous about keeping her "Today Show" job? Will Sebastian Coe really be the only to light the torch during the opening ceremonies? The inside touches are nice, and I have new respect for the swimmers in the 200 Fly. For myself, I would give this book 3 stars, but for students, 4.
Once you get over the somewhat contrived situation, the main thing is that the book does a pretty good job of describing competitions, security, the Olympics, etc. You do have to read it noting that you're being subjected to Feinstein's biases. (Obviously, he thinks the opening ceremonies are too long, he took an unnecessary dig at Omaha, still criticizing the Atlanta Olympics, must be a big Coach K and Mark Alarie fan)
I felt the book could have done with some tighter editing, maybe because they raced to get it out before the Olympics, or do they not give kids enough credit. It would have been less confusing with only one character named "Bobby", and there's too much mention of the names of the different agents, sports reps, etc. On p. 109, they're eating at "Spaghetti Works", but on page 117 it's properly named as "Spaghetti Factory".
Was Feinstein being prescient when he described Ann Curry appearing to be nervous about keeping her "Today Show" job? Will Sebastian Coe really be the only to light the torch during the opening ceremonies? The inside touches are nice, and I have new respect for the swimmers in the 200 Fly. For myself, I would give this book 3 stars, but for students, 4.
fast-paced
Hurry! Run to the bookstore and get this book! Especially while the Olympics are going on! This book was especially fun to read as the Olympics are currently unfolding before us. The best thing with Feinstein books is he adds real characters to his stories, which makes it more exciting to read and helps the "being there" experience! Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte are often mentioned in this book along with other swimming professionals that we are watching on tv right now!
This book is one of the "Final Four Mysteries". Feinstein started this series several years ago. This series has two teenagers, Stevie and Susan Carol, who are young sportswriters who have won a writing competition and now get to cover important sporting events - NCAA basketball tournament, Army/Navy games, Super Bowl, World Series.... and now they are at the 2012 Olympics. Except this time Susan Carol isn't covering the Games... she's participating in them! She's qualified for the Olympics in the 100m and 200m butterfly events. She's being surrounded by agents and sponsors, but how far is everyone willing to go to help her win gold?
If you are interested in swimming (like me!), you will love this book! I loved all the swimming people that were mentioned. The book was obviously written awhile ago because there was mention of Phelps "having decided" to not swim a certain race, when in reality, he did. There is definitely mention of the Lochte-Phelps rivalry throughout the book. At one point, a decorated female swimmer almost doesn't qualify for the finals in her heat.... sound familiar??? Feinstein does a great job staying true to the sport, in all of the books he has written. Having an understanding of swimming, I knew what he was talking about when he mentioned the lengths they were swimming (200m....1000m warm-ups) and the times the swimmers swim. Some kids who are unfamiliar with swimming may not understand the terms, but it won't make them not understand the story.
This "mystery" doesn't really start until the very end of the book. In fact, through most of the story I was wondering if they were ever going to get to it!
I think this book will be well-loved by kids who really enjoy sports or enjoy the Olympic Games. Kids who like mysteries and not have a love for sports, may not enjoy this book as much because of how long it takes to get to the mystery!
I am going to miss this book as I finish watching the 2012 Olympics, it was fun to read!
This book is one of the "Final Four Mysteries". Feinstein started this series several years ago. This series has two teenagers, Stevie and Susan Carol, who are young sportswriters who have won a writing competition and now get to cover important sporting events - NCAA basketball tournament, Army/Navy games, Super Bowl, World Series.... and now they are at the 2012 Olympics. Except this time Susan Carol isn't covering the Games... she's participating in them! She's qualified for the Olympics in the 100m and 200m butterfly events. She's being surrounded by agents and sponsors, but how far is everyone willing to go to help her win gold?
If you are interested in swimming (like me!), you will love this book! I loved all the swimming people that were mentioned. The book was obviously written awhile ago because there was mention of Phelps "having decided" to not swim a certain race, when in reality, he did. There is definitely mention of the Lochte-Phelps rivalry throughout the book. At one point, a decorated female swimmer almost doesn't qualify for the finals in her heat.... sound familiar??? Feinstein does a great job staying true to the sport, in all of the books he has written. Having an understanding of swimming, I knew what he was talking about when he mentioned the lengths they were swimming (200m....1000m warm-ups) and the times the swimmers swim. Some kids who are unfamiliar with swimming may not understand the terms, but it won't make them not understand the story.
This "mystery" doesn't really start until the very end of the book. In fact, through most of the story I was wondering if they were ever going to get to it!
I think this book will be well-loved by kids who really enjoy sports or enjoy the Olympic Games. Kids who like mysteries and not have a love for sports, may not enjoy this book as much because of how long it takes to get to the mystery!
I am going to miss this book as I finish watching the 2012 Olympics, it was fun to read!
I'm a swimmer. I enjoyed this book from the swimming aspect of it, but didn't necessarily understand the mystery part of it. I didn't like the characters that much and I felt like the book was very slow and the end was very fast paced. This isn't a horrible book, it just could've been built a little more.
Stevie and Susan Carol, the 15 year old sports reporters, are back at the Olympics. This time, Susan Carol is actually a competitor in swimming. The intrigue in this plot deals with the agents surrounding Susan Carol and how they are trying to influence her, her family and her choices for money. The details in the swimming races are wonderful, really bringing a new appreciation to anyone who watches the sport (or will in the future). It takes a good long time for the real bad guy to show up in this one, but readers won't mind waiting too much because the details of what it is like behind the scenes at the Olympics really makes up for it. An enjoyable continuation of the series.
This book gave me an incredible amount of detail on swimming and was current. I didn't feel like the mystery was huge, but it was an enjoyable book to read.
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Pre-read reaction: The author's a sportswriter, it's about the Olympics, and it's a mystery? I think I might enjoy this. :)
Post-read reaction: This was very well written. Loved Susan Carol and Stevie's characters and how they toggle between the swimming competition and media tours that athletes travel on. It felt quite vivid and immersed me in the overarching journey. The story has a very decent mystery involving corrupt agents and race fixing, not to mention a few surprises with a nice cast of side characters. Overall, I really enjoyed this and I'm a little sad I didn't read this sooner.
Full review:
"Rush for the Gold" was a wonderful sport related mystery involving a young prodigy swimmer named Susan Carol Anderson, who in previous adventures in the "Final Four Mysteries", had served with her boyfriend Stevie Thomas as junior level reporters for sports events. Susan Carol finds herself in a thrilling scenario when she makes qualifying times enough to make the London Olympics in 2012. Yet, there are problems with this, what with her minister father taking advice from shady, money grubbing agents and neglecting his daughters wishes on every turn, even to the point where he allows the agents to substitute her long time coach (Ed), specify specific details on what she wears and the press she gets (and this does a really good job at portraying sexism of female athletes), and even limiting time that she spends with Stevie among other other friends in substitution for practice.
Suffice to say, Susan Carol doesn't like it one bit, and she lets people know it in her rather Southern drawl. :)
John Feinstein uses his sportswriting background to a wonderful degree in this book. I felt like I was right there in the competition, getting the play by play details among the swimming matches, and it was fun to see some cameo appearances from actual figures such as Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte, and even media figures like Bob Costas, Ann Curry and Matt Laurer, among others in the NBC lineup. You can tell this is fiction and taking place in an alternative scenario to the actual Olympic games, but it touches home on so many issues within the sports realm, and does so in a realistic way. I also liked the overarching mystery in that it builds up to a scandal that you're not necessarily sure where it happens, but it builds things up to light where you see the players in that game and how the characters are able to detect it.
In the end, I was very intrigued with this novel and I really loved watching both Susan Carol and Stevie's interactions through the narrative. I would certainly read more of this series in the future.
Overall score: 4/5
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher Random House BYFR.
Post-read reaction: This was very well written. Loved Susan Carol and Stevie's characters and how they toggle between the swimming competition and media tours that athletes travel on. It felt quite vivid and immersed me in the overarching journey. The story has a very decent mystery involving corrupt agents and race fixing, not to mention a few surprises with a nice cast of side characters. Overall, I really enjoyed this and I'm a little sad I didn't read this sooner.
Full review:
"Rush for the Gold" was a wonderful sport related mystery involving a young prodigy swimmer named Susan Carol Anderson, who in previous adventures in the "Final Four Mysteries", had served with her boyfriend Stevie Thomas as junior level reporters for sports events. Susan Carol finds herself in a thrilling scenario when she makes qualifying times enough to make the London Olympics in 2012. Yet, there are problems with this, what with her minister father taking advice from shady, money grubbing agents and neglecting his daughters wishes on every turn, even to the point where he allows the agents to substitute her long time coach (Ed), specify specific details on what she wears and the press she gets (and this does a really good job at portraying sexism of female athletes), and even limiting time that she spends with Stevie among other other friends in substitution for practice.
Suffice to say, Susan Carol doesn't like it one bit, and she lets people know it in her rather Southern drawl. :)
John Feinstein uses his sportswriting background to a wonderful degree in this book. I felt like I was right there in the competition, getting the play by play details among the swimming matches, and it was fun to see some cameo appearances from actual figures such as Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte, and even media figures like Bob Costas, Ann Curry and Matt Laurer, among others in the NBC lineup. You can tell this is fiction and taking place in an alternative scenario to the actual Olympic games, but it touches home on so many issues within the sports realm, and does so in a realistic way. I also liked the overarching mystery in that it builds up to a scandal that you're not necessarily sure where it happens, but it builds things up to light where you see the players in that game and how the characters are able to detect it.
In the end, I was very intrigued with this novel and I really loved watching both Susan Carol and Stevie's interactions through the narrative. I would certainly read more of this series in the future.
Overall score: 4/5
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher Random House BYFR.
This book gives an amazing example of the difficulties that come with being an Olympian.
3.5 stars
Set at the summer Olympics in London, 2012. Sports journalists Stevie and Susan Carroll are back in the thick of things. This time Stevie has to do quite a bit of the investigative work on his own, however, because Susan Carroll is actually swimming for the US team.
A fun sports read with lots of familiar names like Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, and Natalie McLoughlin.
Set at the summer Olympics in London, 2012. Sports journalists Stevie and Susan Carroll are back in the thick of things. This time Stevie has to do quite a bit of the investigative work on his own, however, because Susan Carroll is actually swimming for the US team.
A fun sports read with lots of familiar names like Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, and Natalie McLoughlin.