Swing! by James Yang

With US Open fever getting underway, what better time to look at a delightfully retro kids’ book about tennis star Arthur Ashe — namesake of the main arena at the world’s largest tennis stadium — and the very personal effect he had on at least one family in the 1970s.

Our unnamed protagonist loves tennis and especially Arthur Ashe, who has a one-handed backhand just like her dad does. She and her dad love both playing and watching tennis together. But sometimes, our heroine has a bad day on the court, and her brain starts bouncing up and down like a tennis ball that she can’t get under control. And sometimes she has a bad day at school, with her schoolmate Timmy bugging her — the only Asian person there — for attention in increasingly irritating ways.

When Dad suggests that they take a break during a particularly frustrating passage of tennis, our heroine asks if she can get glasses like Arthur Ashe too. As they try on several pairs at the store, Dad tells her about all the ways in which Arthur Ashe is a hero, both on and off the court. Soon, she’s reconsidering her approach to both tennis and Timmy, and discovering the power of both courtesy and self-control.

Like the author, I come from a racquet-sports family. My dad played squash before he moved to golf, and my mom and aunt played a ton of tennis every week. We kids all had to learn the basics, even tho I’m still more of a badminton girly myself (my siblings and I even have tickets for badminton during the LA Olympics, for our planned 2028 bonding experience!) So this book would have been entirely in my wheelhouse even if I wasn’t already a huge fan of Arthur Ashe’s trailblazing, activism and legacy. I just wish I’d had more people like the protagonist’s Dad in my life, who could exemplify Mr Ashe’s lessons on compassion and self-discipline instead of fueling my own frustration with my game.

James Yang has not only written a terrific book, he’s also illustrated it spectacularly! It took me a moment to realize that this was set during the highpoint years of Mr Ashe’s career, but the illustrations are absolutely brilliant, especially in the spread where the heroine is pointing out that her dad and Arthur Ashe are wearing the same shirt. The protagonist’s expressions are note perfect, and the color schemes bright and retro without being kitschy. This book is perfect for the library of any reader who loves tennis or who feels that they have trouble keeping their emotions in check and could use a good role model to teach a/o remind them how to move through anger and towards improvement.

Swing! by James Yang was published August 4 2026 by Viking Books for Young Readers and is available from all good booksellers, including