World Team

"One big round world, one small round ball. Right now, more children than you can possibly imagine are playing soccer." In England, it's 1:00 P.M. and Joe is practicing outside his school. In New York City, it's 8:00 A.M. and Lucy dribbles the ball in and out of the shadows. From India to Brazil, from Italy to South Africa, kids are kicking balls aruond on fields, beaches, and streets. This handsome book takes readers on a journey around the globe and through the world's time zones, creating a team of children who share the samedream: glory in the world's most popular game.

About the Author :
Tim Vyner lives in England.

Review :
School Library Journal Vyner's intriguing watercolors over two-page spread depict youthful bodies in angular kicking poses that move against background ranging from rural landscapes to urban billboards. Bulletin, Center for Children's Books Starred Review "One big round world, one small round ball. Right now, more children than you can possibly imagine are playing soccer"-such as the opening page's bronze-skinned boy in baggy blue shorts, who contemplates the goalpost on a sun-bleached soccer field that could be anywhere on earth. Elsewhere at the same moment other World Cup hopefuls are perfecting their moves in some very specific places: "England / 1:00 p.m....Joe is playing soccer outside his school. He practices every afternoon. 'And when I grow up, I'm going to be a professional!'" A continent away in Lebanon, it's 3:00 p.m. and Sami buys a drink from the ice seller in the ruined stadium. 'Imagine what this place was like in the old days, ' he says. 'And think of all the people inside.'" Vyner checks out the action on six continents, and the random order of his visits only serves to fire imaginations with a sense of common interest, even purpose, that unites the footballers. Geography and math teachers should fairly leap at an inviting opportunity to introduce time zones and their calculations, but kids in blissful ignorance of the International Date Line will simply appreciate Vyner's sprawling watercolor scenes of a Calcutta street emblazoned with crayon-bright murals or a Japanese boy's bedroom bedecked with posters and paraphernalia familiar thousands of miles away. There's no need for ham-handed one-glorious-world pedantry; it's crystal clear that setting is only a piquant detail in a common dream. School Library Journal  Vyner’s intriguing watercolors over two-page spread depict youthful bodies in angular kicking poses that move against background ranging from rural landscapes to urban billboards.  Bulletin, Center for Children's Books Starred Review “One big round world, one small round ball.  Right now, more children than you can possibly imagine are playing soccer”–such as the opening page’s bronze-skinned boy in baggy blue shorts, who contemplates the goalpost on a sun-bleached soccer field that could be anywhere on earth.  Elsewhere at the same moment other World Cup hopefuls are perfecting their moves in some very specific places: “England / 1:00 p.m….Joe is playing soccer outside his school.  He practices every afternoon.  ‘And when I grow up, I’m going to be a professional!’”  A continent away in Lebanon, it’s 3:00 p.m. and Sami buys a drink from the ice s