PAULA YOO

The Story of:
OLYMPIC DIVER

SAMMY LEE

By Paula Yoo
Illustrated by Dom Lee

On a summer day in 1932, twelve-year-old Sammy Lee watched enviously as divers catapulted into the public swimming pool. Sammy desperately wanted to try diving himself, but the Korean American boy — like any person of color — was only allowed to use the pool one day a week.

This discrimination did not weaken Sammy's newfound passion for diving, and soon he began a struggle between his dream of becoming an Olympic champion and his father's wish for him to become a doctor. Over sixteen years Sammy faced numerous challenges, but he overcame them all and fulfilled both his dream and his father's. In 1948 Dr. Sammy Lee dove into Olympic history. A matter of seconds after his final platform dive, the scores appeared and Sammy Lee became the first Asian American to win an Olympic gold medal.

Sammy Lee's story of determination and triumph sets an extraordinary example for anyone striving to fulfill a dream. Winner of Lee & Low's New Voices Award, Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds will inspire all who read it.

Check out the curriculum guide for Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds from the William Allen White Children's Book Awards, established and directed by Emporia State University.

 

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  • Paperback publication date: February 25, 2020

  • Trade ISBN: 978-1643790145

  • Reading level: Ages 8-12/Grades 3-7

  • Publisher: Lee & Low Books

"Well-organized information." "Insightful."

The Story of . . . series (3 new titles) takes the narrative text from each author’s well-regarded picture book on the biographee, incorporates facts previously appended, and inserts five multi-page presentations on related topics, effectively refashioning the original biographies for an old audience. These sections offer well-organized information as well as insights into the social and political challenges faced by the person profiled. Olympic Diver Sammy Lee (based on Yoo’s Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds, 2005) includes additional sections on Korean immigration to the U.S., Asians in California, and Olympic diving. Appearing throughout the books, the black-and-white illustrations reproduce certain images from the picture-books and add well-chosen visuals such as period photos, drawings, prints, and/or maps. While the original picture books were intended for older primary-grade and younger middle-grade students, the new, smaller books are better designed to attract and inform middle-grade readers. These well-crafted, insightful biographies provide a useful historical context for each person’s story. — Carolyn Phelan

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