WONDER GIRL The Magnificent Sporting Life of Babe Didrikson Zaharias

Hillary Huber narrates this new biography of one of America’s greatest athletes with panache, confidence, and only a touch of femininity—a style reminiscent of the great Babe Didrikson herself. An All-American basketball player, 1932 Olympic gold medalist in track and field, and championship golfer, Didrikson was often criticized for her brash cockiness, but Huber delicately depicts Didrikson’s underlying thirst for acceptance. Huber employs a thick Texas accent for Babe and clearly defines Babe’s larger-than-life husband with a robust tone. As Huber chronicles Babe’s struggle with cancer, she portrays the deep courage and newfound selflessness that Babe revealed in her campaign for early cancer detection. Listeners need not be sports fans to appreciate the impressive determination of this groundbreaking American. N.M.C. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: SEPTEMBER 2011]