Much of Lipsyte’s nonfiction deals with sports, but here again he rarely takes a conventional approach. He is especially concerned that children are subjected to sports in negative ways. Sports should be fun and entertaining; winning need not be the only goal. Although he is not anti-sport, he is disillusioned by a culture of champions that he calls “Sportsworld.” SportsWorld, as Lipsyte points out in the book by that name, “is a grotesque distortion of sports.” It honors the winner more than the race. As illustrated in The Contender, Lipsyte values the process more than the result; competing well is more important than winning itself.
Lipsyte was among the first to accept and respect the unconventional prizefighter Muhammad Ali. His agreement that Ali should be allowed to be himself is echoed in the title of his 1978 book on the complicated man: Free to Be Muhammad Ali.
In 1978, Robert Lipsyte was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Despite his eventual recovery from that first bout, he was diagnosed with cancer a second time in 1991. His experience with the illness led to another novel for young adults, The Chemo Kid (1992). In it, the protagonist, Fred Bauer, an ordinary high school junior in almost every way, discovers he has cancer and undergoes a series of experimental hormone treatments. Miraculously, Fred acquires superpowers, apparently due to the treatments, and becomes “The Chemo Kid,” fighting for the environment and against drug dealers.
An adult consideration of cancer, and sickness in general, is Lipsyte’s 1998 nonfiction work, In the Country of Illness. Here, he speaks of infirmity as if it is a foreign land, a place he calls “Malady . . . another country, scary and strange.” Basing his accounts on his own experiences, as well as those of other family members, he comforts, advises, warns, and informs the reader with tenderness, insight, and wit. Lipsyte’s second wife, Margie, learned that she had breast cancer after their divorce. Especially moving is the account of Lipsyte’s second wife Margie’s failing health, after being diagnosed with breast cancer, and the strength shown by Margie and their two young adult children.
In addition to the Emmy, Lipsyte’s honors and awards include the Dutton Best Sports Stories Award, E. P. Dutton, 1964, 1965, 1967, 1971, and 1976; the Mike Berger Award, Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, 1966 and 1996; Wel-Met Children’s Book Award, 1967; New York Times outstanding children’s book of the year citation, 1977; American Library Association best young adult book citation, 1977; and New Jersey Author citation, 1978.
