Product Description
It's an exciting time in Fairyland.Everyone is getting ready for the Fairy Olympics!But Jack Frost's goblins have stolen the Sports Fairies' magic objects.Now they're threatening to take over the whole competition!

Rachel and Kirsty are excited to go roller skating in the park --- but so are the goblins!The girls are determined to roll away with Zoe's magic shoelace.

Find the enchanted object in each book, and help keep the Fairyland Olympics magical!

... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Good for sensitive kids
Elementary-school-aged girls love these books.My girls start reading them as soon as they're unwrapped!Not exactly literary masterpieces, but kids find them interesting and funny.The stories are always light - good for sensitive children who aren't yet ready for (and might tend to avoid reading) books that are scary or upsetting.
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Customer Reviews (1)

As the title says, "complete."
The Complete Book of Roller Skating was published in 1979, before the fallof disco skating and the rise of inline skating. Still, this book is anexcellent resource for anyone interested in quad roller skating. It coversskating's history in detail, with lots of great photographs, and devoteschapters to artistic, hockey, speed, disco, and outdoor skating.

Unlikemost other skating reference books, this one talks about the competitiveskating world (at least, as it was in 1979), not just about recreationalskating. We see (in words and photos) skaters training for competition atNationals and Worlds, performing such difficult moves as "theimpossible sit spin," a pairs spin that requires amazing strength fromboth skaters.

The book also includes two chapters of skating lessons,from basic forward skating through spins and the salchow jump.

Whilerecent skating developments can't be found here, and the book is long outof print, it is well worth purchasing if you can find a copy. ... Read more

Product Description
Given the popularity of all types of skating--on the ice, on the boards, and on the streets--why isn't roller skating an Olympic event? Author David H. Lewis sought out people involved in every aspect of the sport in an attempt to answer this question. He talked to competition judges and coaches, rink operators and rink organists, and scores of skaters from around the world. The answers he found--and there are many--are likely to anger and astound readers in turn. Those answers, along with a wealth of information on the world of roller skating past, present and future, are detailed Whether you skate for the love of it, or have higher aspirations in the world on wheels, "Roller Skating for Gold" is fascinating and illuminating reading. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Confirming what skaters already know.
"Why isn't roller skating in the Olympics?" This question has bothered skaters and skating fans for decades. Occasionally it seems that the sport will finally get its day in the sun, but inevitably it retreats to the status quo. Skaters toil on wheels, unknown, while their counterparts on ice score millions of dollars in commercial contracts.

David Lewis recounts the story of roller skating's years of attempting to join the Olympic games, and points out some rather scathing reasons why it hasn't happened yet. Substantial amounts of blame can be placed with the IOC, but even more blame is laid at the feet of the USA Roller Skating organization, portrayed here as inept and out of touch with what needs to be done to push skating forward.

In some cases Lewis' ideas are a bit out of touch themselves -- does he really think that fans would swarm to watch roller skaters compete in school figures or American Dance? Only skaters enjoy watching those events, and not even many of them! But his heart is in the right place, and he clearly has affection for the sport.

Roller Skating for Gold is a good read, but be aware that there are tons of typos and a few factual errors, and the price is extremely high for such a slim book. The high price is the major reason I could only give the book three stars. Were it half the price, it would be a 5 (or at least 4 1/2) star book. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (11)

Everything you wanted to know about Roller Derby
This book gets down to the nitty gritty and makes you laugh out loud. A little book with a lot of heart.

Not what I was expecting.
This book had a lot of fun trivia but I was expecting more info useful to budding leagues. I was hoping for more of a textbook of best practices for league management, marketing, venue scouting, etc. I was expecting it to be FOR insiders not FROM them.
If you're bout-curious this is a good read: if you are familiar with the archetypal derby girls, their lifestyles and perspectives, this might be a bit of a let-down.

My Saturday Morning Derby Fix
Down and Derby is comprehensive narrative of the sport -- its rules, history, cultural impact, personalities and evolution -- written in an intelligent and light style. Every Saturday for the last two months, I've started my day with a few chapters. Now that it's done, I'm looking for my next off-the-track derby fix, but I know I'll regularly cracking this one open for tips, anecdotes and as a reference source.

Every Roller Derby Chyck Needs To Read This
What a great book! Ever considered joining roller derby, this is your WAY IN. I love that it's historical, informative, AND entertaining. I can't wait until my baby daughter (aka the future Derby Doll) is old enough to read this. Thank you, Jennifer and Alex for writing this book!

Great book, gets some historical details fairly wrong though.
I love the book. But...

This book needed an editor to factcheck. Someone who wasn't writing the book.

A few minor errors (and one rather glaring), and how they might have been avoided:

The book says that Jerry Seltzer ceased operation of Roller Derby in 1972. Uh no, that happened in 1973. I'm guessing the writer either typoed this or inferred more meaning than was intended in someone's writing on what may have been happening within the league in 1972. Derby ending in 1973 is a very well-established fact. Wikipedia will tell you it ended in 1973. Roller Derby to RollerJam will tell you it ended in 1973. Jerry himself will tell you it ended in 1973. There are DVDs on sale on the web with 1973 games that Jerry is one of the announcers for. In other words, "just Google it."

Mercy Less was with Duke City Derby when the book was being written. She started off with Charm City, and while she might have mentioned them somewhere on her questionaire, a Google search would've clarified which league she was with.

Muffy Stopheles is with Roc City Roller Derby. Not "Roc City Rollers." The former league exists, the latter does not. Again, a simple Google search could have prevented that one.

In the gear section, it wouldn't have hurt to go a bit more in depth about the options for plates. Most skaters have woefully inadequate knowledge about their skates and how they work, so the existence of the section is certainly helpful. ... Read more

Product Description
An introduction to the history, equipment, and techniques of indoor and outdoor roller skating. ... Read more

Product Description
An introduction to roller skating, its history, equipment, basic techniques, various types of skating, skating games, and skating competitions. ... Read more

Product Description
Step-by-step instructions, diagrams, and photographs illustrate techniques for learning to skate and for more advanced figure and dance skating. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (12)

How can it take so long?
It has now been more than four weeks since I ordered this product from someone or other on Amazon.com ...... and frankly I just cannot believe the quoted delivery time to get a small parcel from one civilised English speakingdemocracy to another, US to Australia has now taken over a month and it is still not here !! AND I can't make any comment about delivery until the 'quoted' delivery time is exceeded, which is another month !!! Give me strength ......... two months for one little paperback from America to Australia.
As for the book ...... I am sure that it will be great but I can barely remember what I bought ........
Sorry .... trying to be helpful, American suppliers on Amazon can be very US centric ...... the rest of the world just doesn't seem to exist for them yet ........PS: I hope this post is removed, by someone actually paying attention, before it gets to air.

Pretty much nails modern derby, blows it on the sport's history
There's no sources referenced in the book. The parts on the classic roller derby (common noun, as it touches on a number of flavors) gets things horribly wrong.

My best guess is that Mabe sourced those parts of the book from the sketchy histories of the sport found on various leagues' web sites. And not from the three-plus well-written books on the history of the sport. One of which is currently back in print, and another which I found available at the local public library.

Let's see, contrary to what she says the Transcontinental Roller Derby started off skating on a banked track, not a flat track. RollerJam did not have an alligator pit, that was Rollergames. When an author isn't sure of the answers, the best place to find them isn't Google. It's through research. Read Five Strides on the Banked Track, Roller Derby to RollerJam or A Very Simple Sport.

Amazon sold this to me then 20 days later said they can't ship
I am done shopping at amazon ever again and wanted to let you know. Your shipping is horrible and your customer service is not any better. AFTER I bought the book YOU said you HAD IN STOCK, THEN you decided to STOP SELLING IT and then WAIT 20 CALENDAR DAYS to tell me that you won't be sending my already ordered items. This is NOT the 1st time......but it is the LAST! This is not a good business plan,especially since you have made me mad enough to stop shopping with your company after 10 years! DO NOT TRUST AMAZON!

makes a good textbook
Mabe's book makes for an excellent textbook on roller derby. other reviews have labeled it as a good coffee table book, and i agree. i borrowed this, too, from my girlfriend (the other was melicious's) and liked all the additivies in it. however, it, again, is more like a textbook than anything else and could have easily been called "roller derby 101," instead.
other reviews mentioned the lack of detail in the pictures. this i agree with. i dont really know anything about roller derby (well, until after i read this informative book) and would have liked some descriptions in the photos. that was probably the only disappointment in an other wise splendid textbook about how roller derby works.

Best Friend Loved It
My best friend and I took up roller derby together.I got this for her birthday, and she went wild!
It's informative, colorful, and fun! ... Read more

Product Description
Get Rolling is your guide to the safest, easiest way to start (and stop!) rolling on in-line skates. Author Liz Miller is a nationally-known certified instructor who wrote Get Rolling for nervous novices seeking a comprehensive in-line how-to guide.

With an easy, encouraging format and tons of empathy for your fears, Liz will turn you into a confident, competent skater with dozens of step-by-step lessons, plenty of photos, and her own lively drawings. Then you, too, can benefit from the most fun form of low-impact exercise around!

You will learn:

How to avoid injury and conquer the debilitating fear of falling
Beginning to advanced techniques for stopping, turning and striding
Where to find the true bargains for skates and protective gear
Building blocks for in-line hockey, racing, ski cross training, and more
Where to skate, what to wear, and how to stay fit with "roll-aerobics"
Acclaimed worldwide, Get Rolling is the only in-line skating book you'll need to go safely stride-by-stride from beginner to expert skating! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Clear and concise book
I bought this book a few days ago and I still didn't cover it all, but as far as I read it's a very instructive book. It's very well explained with a concise a clear language and I'm sure it's helping me to improve my skating skills in the last weeks.
I really recommend it to every beginner in-line skater.

Inline Skating Review
Liz Miller's instructional book, though wordy, offers an excellent "abc" approach to getting started.For first-time inline skaters, the book provides a thorough explanation of how to get safely up and moving--and stopping.Many of the basic skills are presented in a straightforward, rather easy-to-understand manner, but of course only their consistent application along with diligent practice will produce results. A more detailed explanation of how to control speed and stop on inclines and slopes would be helpful.She clearly presents the rubber foot brake as the best way to control downhill speed, using the standard posture given in other instructional books and videos, but the keeping a vertical "straight back" with flexed knees presents a good amount of instability for beginners, which invites a calamitous backwards fall. Here more about using a slalom approach, carving half circles, etc., with the body bent forward over the center of gravity, would offer more safety while one's ability and confidence grows. In all, it's to be recommended as one of the better books currently available for beginners.

Excellent for Beginners
This book has very well written instructions to learn in-line skating from the beginning. It has been very useful for me to get some background before heading to a formal skating course. It is nice that the book also contains advice on equipment and related magazines.
I think it should have further figures because many drills are difficult to understand by only a written description.

The BEST Beginner's & Intermediate Guide to In-Line Skating
The most complete guide on, comprehensive step-by-step, In-Line skating lessons.It takes you from beginner to advanced intermediate in the safest way.The fear of falling is gone; you learn how to fall and get up properly. The Yoga poses are very helpful for balance, strength and increased range of motion.Chapter 7 teaches you how to stay fit with "roll-aerobics".Key terms, skate maintenance, safety, etc. are all covered. If a DVD on the skating techniques accompanied the guide on "GET ROLLING" it would obliterate every in-line skating manual.

For the absolute beginner
Just an intro about me, I'm a 40yr old male and having lost weight and seeking a more active lifestyle decided that all the times I'd seen rollerbladers on the beach walk, it was for me.

This book will take you from a never skated numbty to a skater with confidence in about 15hour sessions, I'm now over 20-25hours skating and have progressed through the book. It is quite straight forward and although you will find the need to have the book on hand during practice, it will guide you through what corrections you may need to take to finally master the skills. (Some skills took me more time than others to pick up, when I finally realised I wasn't quite carrying out the practice/tuition right.)

While I still manage to have the odd moment (almost falling) it is nice to be able to skate the local beach walk (3km's) knowing that I can stop turn and steer to avoid 'moments'.

Without this book, I believe I'd still be stumbling along in the carpark, frustrated that I wasted so much money. In my area there is limited tuition and this book was just what I needed.

I encourage beginners to heed the safety advice and also purchase 'crash pants' - I spent 2 weeks waiting for skin and bruising to heal from being over enthusiastic in attempting a hill trail too soon.

Get the book, get some good skates and find a vacant flat lot for your first 10hours - try some trails and go back to the lot to build your skills.

I'm enjoying the sport and hope that I can do so for many more of my 'aging' years.


Good Luck.
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Product Description
A former world champion provides advice on becoming a successful competitive figure and freestyle roller skater. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Filling a niche, and it's about time!
The History of Roller Skating is a wonderful book about a topic that has been sorely neglected. Even most competitive roller skaters have very little knowledge of the history of their sport; Turner's book goes a long way toward filling in those gaps, with emphasis on the USA skating scene.

With lots of detail and many wonderful photos, this History is entertaining for those both in and out of the US competitive skating community. It's also of interest to ice skaters and ice skating fans who are curious about the shared history of ice and roller skating.

Color photos would be a nice edition to a future edition of this book (the current edition features black and white photos), especially in the chapter that talks about changes in skating costuming over the years. If there was anything else I would change, it would be to add more about the skaters who have made history throughout the years.Who were the great skaters, the equals of ice skating's Dorothy Hamill or Brian Boitano? Since roller skating doesn't get TV coverage, those skaters are unknown, and they shouldn't be. The book mentions some of the skaters and their feats, but more photos and statistics would be tremendous -- there really is no other source for them.

Even without those improvements, this is an excellent book that I can recommend with no reservations. ... Read more

Product Description
When 90 boxes of roller skates arrive unexpectantly at Mr. Brown's store, the whole town buys them. Full color. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (6)

Roller Skating Rink Murder
Very entertaining book. Author has a thorough background of roller skating and skating rinks. She emulates the "big city girl" stranded in a small town in rural Illinois. This book "flows" well.

Wonderfully balances a healthy dose of comedy & an engaging mystery.
When Rebecca Robbins returns home to tiny Indian Falls, Illinois she initially thinks she has one problem to deal with - selling the roller rink she inherited from her mother - but ends up with something decidedly more ominous on her hands... a dead body in one of the roller rink's bathrooms.

Though at first it looks like an accident or suicide given the bottle of prescription pills found nearby, the town's doctor / coroner soon rules it a homicide making Rebecca's task of selling the roller rink even more difficult. (Who wants to buy a murder scene?)

And if a dead body throwing a monkey wrench into her plans to make a quick sale and hightail it back to Chicago wasn't bad enough, the glacial pace - and incompetence - of local law enforcement's investigation makes the prospect of Rebecca ever getting out of Dodge look downright grim.

What's a girl to do? Take matters into her own hands, of course. So, with the "help" of her grandfather, Pop, Rebecca becomes a reluctant detective... and finds more than she expected.

Author Joelle Charbonneau has obviously drawn upon her extensive experience in the performing arts to give each of her characters a strong, and unique, voice. From Rebecca (who has a wonderful mix of whimsy and level-headedness), to Pop (who's both well connected and disturbingly "active" in the town's retired community), to Neil (Rebecca's seriously misguided boss and would-be suitor), to Lionel (the veterinarian Rebecca loves to hate... or is it hates to love?), to Elwood the camel, every character has an incredibly rich, fully realized personality (yes, a camel can have a personality... trust me on this.)

A few of the situations Rebecca finds herself in are reminiscent of the early Stephanie Plum novels by Janet Evanovich (when they were still fresh and funny), though Charbonneau wisely never veers into the all-out slapstick territory that Plum frequently ends up in. Rather, Charbonneau has managed to deftly balance a healthy dose of comedy with a serious and engaging mystery. Add to that pitch perfect descriptions of the ins and outs of small town living and Skating Around the Law hits so many right notes it's like reading an exquisitely conducted symphony.

Most Fun I've Read in a While
What struck me the most about this novel was the strong thread of humor running throughout, and I enjoyed the heck out of that. There is an excellent cast of characters holding up an interesting little whodunnit, with just enough twists and mild coincidences to keep the story flowing. An excellent first novel from Ms. Charbonneau!

Fresh and fun
Joelle tells this cozy in a fresh, slightly crazy voice that charmed me from start to finish. The story will keep you guessing and smiling, because in the tradition of the best whodunits, everyone is guilty of something. Just when you think you've figured it all out, another twist will twist your mind. Fun, fun, fun.

A must read for Evanovich lovers!
What a great debut for Joelle Charbonneau!

In Skating Around The Law, Rebecca is feisty & funny as she begrudgingly reacquaints herself with her childhood hometown. Hilarity ensures as Rebecca tries to overcome the ineptitude of the town sheriff's department while trying to solve a murder so she can return to her `real life' in the city.

Outstanding characters make this book something special (I personally love Elwood). It's a funny and engrossing read that you just hate to put down. ... Read more

Product Description
Six-year-old Karen breaks her wrist while showing off her roller-skating expertise and then creates a little excitement by getting everybody to sign her cast. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

My First Chapter Book
This was my very first chapter book.I was 7 my mother had gotten it for me from a used book store, the pages were already perfectly worn.It was one of my favorite books mostly because I broke my right arm quite similarly to the way that Karen had broken hers.I remember the feeling of greatness accomplishing my first book, and then I turned around and read it 3 more times!!!!!!

Karen's want to being a daredevil turns into a disaster!
Synopsis: Karen Brewer is spending the weekend at her father's place, and she has new roller skates which she is excited to try. She wants to try out some tricks that she saw on TV, but she forgets to wear her wrist guard as she goes out, and after imitating a simple trick, she falls down and hurts her wrist. She is taken to the emergency room, where the doctor gives her a shot, and puts a cast on her arm which he says she would have to wear for eight weeks!

Later, she meets her classmate Ricky at the hospital who has a similar cast on his ankle, but with lots of autographs, and tells her that he would be getting one from Hubert Gregory, the famous baseball player. Karen's mission for the rest of the weekend is to beat Ricky by having more people sign her autographs, including someone famous. However, afraid that her classmates might think she got a cast for such a minor incident, Karen starts exaggerating about her accident to her friends. Will Karen beat Ricky and get more autographs, before her exaggerated stories go out of control?

Review: I enjoyed reading this book because I thought it was fun and educational to read. It was interesting to see the author introduce terms such as stethoscope and `Merthiolate', along with the process of how the doctor did the X-Ray and put the cast on her. Some parts were also exciting to read, like when Karen tries to get Morbidda Destiny's autograph or when we get to read and decipher the messages that her friends and family wrote on her cast.

The only part I was disappointed with this book was the title. I think it should have been renamed "Karen's Cast" or "Karen's Autographs" or even "Karen's Accident", not "Karen's Roller Skates" because she spent more time in her cast than she did in her roller skates.

Apart from that, I liked reading this book, and cant wait for the next one in the series.

roller skates
karen got new roller skates and wanted to try tricks with them but ended up breaking her wrist and runs into her classmate ricky at the hospital who broke his leg from falling down the stairs and has autographs all over it so karen went all around her neighborhood to get it autographed and even her big-house pets and hannie's pets paw prints were on the cast. But she really wanted the autograph of a famous person and got it at the end though ann didn't write about that part.

Karen's Roller Skates
I really like these books. I used to just get them from the library, but now I have bought some. In this book, Karen got new roller skates. She jumps over two cans, but then when she tries to turn around, she falls down and breaks her wrist. She has to go to the hospital and get a cast. Then, she sees Ricky there, and he broke his leg. In the rest of the book, Karen gets people to sign her cast, and the pets pawprints. This is a good book, but I think it wouldn't be very confusing (it isn't anyway) if you read the Baby Sitters Club series first.

Learning to be Honest
Karen fell and broke her wrist doing tricks on her new skates.She wanted a famous person to sign her cast so she would be more popular than her friend Ricky who also has a cast.She told stories that weren't truebecauseshe thought the real story would be too boring. I liked thisbook because I also broke my arm one time.I learned from this book thatfriends can help each other and that you don't have to lie to have friends. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

This book was very informative and helpful.
This book was very helpful.However, it gave too much advice about things I am good at.Such as skating, simple shots, etc.This is the ideal book for beginners and those who want to get started. ... Read more

Product Description
Continuing his adventures Out West, Snickerdoodle rescues a runaway rodeo horse who refuses to become a bucking bronco and makes peace with a tough opponent. Story shows the importance of persistence in pursuing a personal goal and how to make friends with bullies. Reinforces theme: Be yourself. Dare to dream big! ... Read more