Super-Niche Reading List #2: E’s Favorite Sports Fiction Books

Head Over Heels is about a former elite gymnast who got injured right before her shot at the Olympics. This follows her years later as she attempts to move on with her life, until she gets sucked back in as a coach of a talented young gymnast. This book has romance, and also deals with a fictionalized version of the #MeToo moment in gymnastics. All in all it’s a fun fast read that you’ll love if you enjoy gymnastics (or at least watching the Olympics every four years).

Beartown is my all-time favorite book, so obviously you should read it if you haven’t! (I told you I love this niche). Frederick Bachman is just so good at capturing human emotion and relationships, and he does it so well in this book about a small town in rural Sweden where life revolves around the local hockey team. I always describe Beartown as Friday Night Lights but for hockey, and how could you go wrong with that? Beartown also has a sequel Us Against You, and was recently adapted into a TV show!

The Singles Game is about tennis, and it’s written by the Lauren Weisberger who you may know better as the author of The Devil Wears Prada. This follows Charlie as she leaves college to go pro and her personal life becomes a major part of the spotlight. I’m not a huge tennis fan, but it was really interesting to read about the glamorous life of fictional pro tennis players.  

One of my favorite reads of 2020, this YA novel is set in Argentina where everyone is obsessed with futbol. Camila loves to play, but there’s little support for women. Her childhood crush has become a European sensation, and the story starts when he comes back to their city for a visit. Camila has to balance her dedication to the game with her relationships to her friends and family. This one is so inspiring. 

Another 2020 fave, Evvie Drake Starts Over follows Evvie, a young widow in rural Maine, and Cal, a Major League Baseball player with the yips, who moves into her guest house. This is another romance, but Cal’s character and his sudden inability to play the game he’s built a career around are really compelling. 

Sal is a pro women’s soccer player in the US. Her team is shocked to learn that former German superstar Reiner Kulti is their new assistant coach. This is a SLOW burn romance, but really well done. This one also has some of the strongest sports plots of the whole list, if you’re into that.

Another Mariana Zapata, this one follows Vanessa who is a personal assistant to Aidan Graves, one of the NFL’s best defensive players. Unlike most major celebrities, Aidan is shy and stays out of the spotlight. Though there is romance (duh), this book is really about Vanessa trying to figure out her life (relatable). 

I’m hesitant to add this one, because the sports subplot is so minimal, but Casey, the main character of Writers and Lovers is a former championship golfer, now struggling as a waitress in Cambridge. I lived in the area for a couple years, so I loved this one for all the descriptions of Cambridge and Boston. Honestly I would have liked this one better if it dealt more with Casey’s fall from grace as a golfer and how that affected her present life, but it doesn’t deal much with the backstory.  

This was one of A’s favorites of 2020, and I loved it in 2019 when I read it. This book truly has everything, including a sport subplot about world class ski racers, romance, and a family mystery. This also takes place mostly in Buenos Aires and made me immediately want to book a flight. 

Another gymnastics book! This one is more about the parents of a young elite gymnast, and the sacrifices they make plus the pressure they put on their daughter. There’s also a murder mystery. Not super realistic, but it is an interesting and quick read.