Stunt Performers by Clara Cella
Series: Dangerous Jobs (UpDog Books ™)
Published by Lerner Publications on January 1, 2023
ISBN: 1728475570
Pages: 24
Format: Chapter Book Nonfiction
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The Updog Books is attempting to offer books in high-interest areas, but this title misses the mark. The age range is listed as grade 4-6 but there are very few words in the book opting instead to use large photographs. None of the photos are labeled with captions even when referred to in the text. For example, “A 1903 movie had the first stunt performer. In the 1920s, many comedians were stunt performers.” There are two photographs accompanying this text and neither is captioned so the reader is left to guess which movie and which comedian, the ones in the photos? And this page also has a box with a definition of the word comedian, which feels unrelated to stunt performers. The other defined terms: “modern,” “entertainment,” and “martial arts,” are simplistic and don’t do much to further the reader’s understanding of stunt performing. Every photograph features a male stunt performer or actor, then the “Meet a Stunt Performer” page has one woman, who is former gymnast and the photo is of her performing gymnastics, not stunts. This is the one and only place where the text mentions that the business is mostly white and male, so this Black, female stunt performer is a nod to diversity. It feels performative instead of representational. This title could have been great for those reluctant readers, but it is thin in both information and representation. Only very large libraries with big budgets might purchase this series to fill a need for books about non-traditional jobs.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Falmouth Middle School