Tennis Shoes

This book is my favorite of all the shoes books. The characters are interesting and relatable and the sport is one of my favorites.

I adored this book as a child. I can't believe it's out of print in the uk. It tells the story of four children training to become professional tennis players. Nicky, the heroine is an interesting character and it gives a real picture of her struggle, as well as the points where she loses motivation. There is also an interesting point where her older sister discovers she is not good enough and has to give up. This is a great read and also has depth.

I read most of Noel Streatfeild's children's books that were readily available in the mid 80's and have just recently discovered her excellent adult novels, especially Grass in Picadilly and Sapling as well as her three autobiographical book-- but there is something about this book that always bothered me when I was younger and still strikes me now. I'm not sure how the father is meant to be presented but he seems like such a distant and demanding person that I just felt bad for the children. What kind of father punishes a child for selling the family's umbrellas (to raise money to afford tennis equipment no less) but not giving her birthday or Christmas presents for two years-- but instead gives her four umbrellas over two years. I certainly sympathized with the children and the pressure they were under to be great at something but whether or not it was intentional, this book takes it further than the other "shoe" books.

Do you remember when the Meg Ryan character walked into Tom Hanks' FOX BOOKS store and the customer asked about the "Shoes" books, and a monologue about the wonders of Noel Streatfeild's "Shoes" books ensued, touching on Dancing Shoes, Ballet Shoes, and Skating Shoes, which is absolutely wonderful? That scene made me break down crying, because I had never heard anyone other than myself talk about these terrific books, and the fact that it is tragic that they are mostly out of print and hard to find. This book is a wonderful story of working hard for a goal, and accomplishing it, or at least getting on the road to achieving a reasonable, yet magical, goal. If you want a great book for your favorite elementary school girl, buy this one - then buy the other "Shoes" books (and get a copy of Movie Shoes for your favorite boy too!)