Though there are many reference works on sports, few are as thorough as this one, which reviews 50 sports and their histories, origins, representations in popular culture, key athletes, and scandals, plus fascinating tidbits (e.g., the British constructed the first indoor swimming pool and established competitive swimming in the 1830s). Schwartz (multimedia journalism and mass communication, Augustana Coll., Rock Island, IL) selected the book’s variety of sports, taking into consideration global and gender representation and acknowledging the role of British imperialism in sports culture (he writes: “It is important to recognize that sports history neither begins nor ends with the United Kingdom”). Accordingly, the sports discussed here come from cultures around the world, including Polynesia, Mongolia, Indigenous America, and South Africa. Entries, averaging seven pages each, tackle e-sports, horse racing, jai alai, lacrosse, rodeo, rugby, and more; each entry includes a time line that charts the first time the game was known to be played, plus sidebars and a short list of additional reading. The book also has an alphabetical cumulative bibliography, a separate topical bibliography organized by sport, and a detailed index that makes access a breeze. Schwartz’s work nicely complements Rachel Laws Myers’s Race and Sports, plus other titles on sports in specific regions. VERDICT This superbly written volume will appeal to sports and physical education students; researchers in foreign policy, gender studies, history, politics, sociology, and technology; and general high school and college readers who enjoy the odd sports history factoid.