Plan to Win: Success Guide for Young Athletes

A fictional scenario explains that the success of the school's athletes is due to positive thinking, and advice is provided for parents and coaches on how to instill this winning attitude into students

Gr 9 Up-This book offers a Norman Vincent Peale-type approach to athletic competition, stressing the power of positive thinking and self-confidence as the key to success on the playing field. Moore sets up a fictional scenario in which four college students take a field trip to ``Chaucer High School.'' This mythical school has an extraordinary winning record and the athletic director attempts to explain their long-term achievements to the visitors. One of the young men, a baseball player, relates their experience and conversations with the inspirational Coach Norman. While few would dispute that self-confidence is a trait found in most successful athletes, the staged setting presented here will be a turn off to most YAs. Points are driven home again and again to the extent that those who attempt to finish this book will need the stamina of a well-trained athlete. YAs will be just as well served by reading the brief summary notes that appear at the end of most chapters. The second part of the book offers tips to parents and coaches on ways to instill in youth the ``attitude'' that was explained earlier. Mediocre cartoons are used to reinforce principles throughout.-Tom S. Hurlburt, La Crosse Public Library, WI

Copyright 1994 Cahners Business Information, Inc.