Breakaway: Beyond the Goal by Alex Morgan (English) Paperback Book

Description: Breakaway by Alex Morgan "Get inspired to be your best--in sports and in life--with this uplifting memoir from star soccer player and Olympic gold medalist Alex Morgan... From her beginnings with the American Youth Soccer Organization to her key role in the 2015 Womens World Cup, Alex shares the details that made her who she is today: a fantastic role model and athlete who proudly rocks a pink headband."--Amazon.com. FORMAT Paperback LANGUAGE English CONDITION Brand New Publisher Description Get inspired to be your best--in sports and in life--with this uplifting memoir from star soccer player, Olympic gold medalist, and FIFA World Cup champion Alex Morgan that includes eight pages of full-color photos! As a talented and successful female athlete, Alex Morgan is a role model to thousands of girls who want to be their best, not just in soccer, but in life. The story of her path to success--from playing in the 2011 Womens World Cup, to winning gold in the 2012 London Olympics, to ranking as one of the National Teams top scorers--will inspire everyone who reads it. From her beginnings with the American Youth Soccer Organization to the role she played in winning the 2015 Womens World Cup, Alex shares the details that made her who she is today: a fantastic role model and athlete who proudly rocks a pink headband. Author Biography Alex Morgan became the youngest member of the US womens national soccer team in 2009 and competed in the 2011 FIFA World Cup. She was the first overall pick in the 2011 Womens Professional Soccer draft and landed a spot on the US Olympic womens soccer team in 2012. At the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, held in London, Morgan won her first Olympic medal, a gold, with the American team. In 2015, she achieved her lifelong goal of winning a World Cup trophy, in the most-watched soccer match in US history. She now plays for the Orlando Pride in Orlando, Florida. Review "[A] natural role model for teens. . . tween and teen soccer fans, particularly those who watched the recent U.S. womens victory in the World Cup, will be eager to get their hands on anything with Morgans name on the cover."-- "Booklist""This inspirational memoir from a soccer champion and Olympic gold medalist will appeal to sports fans and nonathletes alike. . . A great addition to memoir and sports collections in public and high school libraries."-- "School Library Journal""Author of a best-selling middle-grade sports series, the Kicks, the Olympic gold-medal-winning soccer star Morgan shares her own life story in this YA memoir. Morgan experiences challenges--unanticipated changes in coaching staff, balancing academics and sports, and riding out injuries--but she does so with a positive attitude in a way that makes her a natural role model for teens, particularly teen athletes."-- "BookList" Review Quote "This inspirational memoir from a soccer champion and Olympic gold medalist will appeal to sports fans and nonathletes alike. . . A great addition to memoir and sports collections in public and high school libraries." Excerpt from Book Breakaway CHAPTER 1 I was doing things my own way even before I was born. After having two girls, my parents wanted a boy. Not that having a third girl is a bad thing; they just wanted something different. But I had my own set of plans, and when I was born on July 2, 1989, there I was: a little baby girl. With each child my parents had had an agreement. If they had a boy, my dad would choose the name, and if they had a girl, my mom would have the honor. My mom settled on the name Alexandra for me. I can only guess thats because my dad had chosen the "boy name" Alexander, and my mom decided to allow him just the smallest bit of influence. Whats so funny is that even though my dad doted on his girls, he had a real vision of how he would have raised his son, if hed had one. He once said that since I was the third girl, "he was going to make a boy out of me somehow." He was joking, of course--he loves having three girls and wouldnt trade us for anything--but I think he had certain hopes as a father. My dad grew up playing baseball, and he dreamed of a son playing it, living out what hed loved most as a little boy. Im getting ahead of myself, though. Way before my dad helped introduce me to athletics, I was just a little kid growing up in Diamond Bar, California, about twenty-five miles east of Los Angeles. Diamond Bar is a nice suburban community--quiet, sunny, and generally happy. I liked it there. Mostly everyone knew one another, and I was able to walk to elementary and middle school. But there wasnt very much going on in Diamond Bar. It was a huge deal when we got a Target, and we didnt even have a chain restaurant until I was fifteen or so. Its the kind of place that youre happy to grow up in but also happy to get out of once you come of age. I think so much of my youth revolved around sports precisely because not much else happened around me. My parents basically grew up together. My dad was best friends with my moms older brother, and hes as close with my moms siblings as she is. In fact, he probably sees them even more than she does! My parents starting dating on and off when my mom was eighteen or so, and they got married and had my eldest sister when she was twenty-three and he was thirty-four. My dad owned and ran a small construction company, and my mom worked with him until she decided to get her masters degree when I was about six. My two older sisters, Jenny and Jeri, were my best friends. Jenny is six years older than me, and Jeri is four years older. I was very close to Jeri, experiencing intense ups and downs like you do with your friends, and Jenny was a little more of a mother figure to me, especially when my mom went back to school at night. She happily dove into a caretaking role and began cooking for the family and organizing things for us while our mom was at class. I was always in their shadow. When youre the third kid, its just like that. Youre considered "the baby." And my mom always got us confused! When shed call me for something, shed say, "Jenny! Jeri! I mean Alex!" She definitely valued us as individuals, but three girls can be a whirlwind! My parents were stricter with me than they were with my sisters. Even though I was kind of sweet and shy and not at all a troublemaker, they held me to a higher standard. Maybe they knew my potential, or maybe they wanted to do everything right for their last child. I remember we used to play so many games. Family games on Wednesday nights were always a big deal, especially with my dad. Wed play gin rummy or Monopoly or other board games, and they were really competitive. Thats where I got my fighting spirit; competition was a positive thing in our house, not a negative one. There were always winners and losers, though--nobody would be handed a win out of pity. My mom was actually the only one who wouldnt laugh in your face when she won. If it was just me and her, the outcome of the game really didnt matter. But not my dad! He would literally do a dance around the house after he won. It was extremely annoying. Like I said, competition was all in good fun, but Im not sure how fun Jeri thought it was when I first beat her in a footrace. Id always been one step behind her in everything, but when I was nine I realized I was pretty fast and I might have a chance at doing something better than her. Id stopped thinking my name was "Jeris little sister" instead of Alex, and I was going to assert myself! "Im going to beat you! Youve got no chance. Im going to win," Jeri yelled at me as we were about to race against each other at the school across from our house. "Just you watch me," I said as I took off running. Jeri couldnt even keep up--I crossed the finish line way before her. Im sure shed deny it to this day, but I remember it clearly. I totally killed her. My dad really wanted us to be athletic, and we all played different sports when we were little. I played soccer, softball, basketball, volleyball, and even participated in local track meets, which I loved. I was probably three when I really learned how to catch a ball, and that was when Dad decided I was destined for softball. My sisters had been playing in a softball league for years, so Id seen lots of their games. I remember holding on to the fence outside one of their games, poking my nose through as I cheered them on. Dad signed me up for a team as soon as I was old enough, and from then on I played softball more often and more intensely than any other sport. The first team I played on was a T-ball team called the As, and it was, of course, coached by my dad. Jenny and Jeri were really good at school, but I took to athletics a little more than them, so I think thats when my dad started pushing me harder than them. It wasnt in a bad way--he just nudged me to do something I seemed naturally inclined toward and that I liked. We would go to Anaheim Angels baseball games all the time. My dad had season tickets for a few years, and every time we went, he made sure that I brought my glove just in case I caught a foul ball. It was always so fun going to games, but now that Im so into soccer, I look back and think, Wow, baseball is boring. Why did I enjoy it so much? Maybe it was just because I liked making my dad proud. One day when I was about nine, though, I decided Id had enough. Id been playing soccer since I was five, and Id realized that it was the sport for me. I turned to my dad and said, "You know what? I dont like softball." "What?" I could see the shocked look on my dads face. I was so good! How was it possible that I didnt like it? "I like soccer. I like to run." Dads face visibly softened. You see, he just wanted me to be happy and to chase my dreams. His goal--for me to love softball as much as he loved baseball--wasnt the most important thing. He just wanted me to follow my passion, whatever it was. And it was clear that my passion was soccer. Pushing Moves You Forward Theres probably someone really important in your life who pushes you toward a goal--it could be your teacher, your mom, your grandfather, or someone else entirely--and you might disagree with them sometimes. I disagreed with my dad all the time! But I think you still need to value their place in your life. If you listen to them and let them in, they will probably nudge you just a little harder to find your passion. Ill always thank my dad for doing that for me. Details ISBN1481451081 Author Alex Morgan Short Title BREAKAWAY R/E Audience Age 12-17 Publisher Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers Language English ISBN-10 1481451081 ISBN-13 9781481451086 Media Book Format Paperback DEWEY B Pages 320 Year 2017 Publication Date 2017-06-06 Subtitle Beyond the Goal Edition Description Reprint ed. Imprint Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers Audience Teenage / Young adult We've got this At The Nile, if you're looking for it, we've got it. 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