Description: A mere few years ago, women soccer players were lucky to attract the attention of baggage handlers at the airport. It would have been hard to imagine then that on July 10, 1990, more than 90,000 spectators, including President Clinton, and another 40 million Americans watching on television would witness the exhilarating championship match of the Women's World Cup. What was once the lonely obsession of the women on the U.S. team has now exploded into a cultural phenomenon signaling a generational shift. The little girls of the '70s and '80s have grown up to kick serious butt. In the Girls of Summer, award-winning New York Times sportswriter Jere Longman gives the reader an astonishingly intimate view of a team on a historic mission. With especially revealing profiles of such marquee players as Mia Hamm, Michelle Akers, Brandi Chastain, and Brianna Scurry, Longman explores the larger issues generated by their success -- the media's sexualization of the team, their newfound status as role models, the players grappling with the issue of race, and the battle to establish an enduring legacy of female dominance in sport. The first definitive portrayal of an American women's team sport, The Girls of Summer is the enthralling story of a wholesome, fun-loving bunch of women who dribbled their way into the hearts of a nation.

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