Growing Up Pedro by Matt Tavares

Growing Up Pedro by Matt Tavares
Rating: 5 stars

Candlewick

I'm so happy it's baseball season again. I'm thrilled to spend many afternoons throwing the ball around with now both of my sons, and sometimes pitching to them in our backyard. I love watching Ben practice, and I love watching the games.

I've said it before here, but one of the things I love so much about baseball is that there are so many wholesome, heroic, hard-working, and dedicated ballplayers. Many of these great men lived and played in the past--but their memories live on through their stats and their lore, so their lessons are still accessible and easy to discuss with my sons. But how great to find a man from the present whose life and character are worth knowing and emulating.

The talented Matt Tavares shows and tells us of how Pedro Martinez grew up in the Dominican Republic. He followed in his big brother Ramon's footsteps as he played baseball, practiced pitching by aiming at mangoes in trees, and dreamed big. Ramon made it to the minor leagues, then the major leagues, and soon Pedro, despite his small size, got a chance. He pitched his way through the Dodgers' minor league system and finally played alongside Ramon. The two boys were ecstatic--it's a big dream come true!

Then what always happens happened: Pedro got traded to the Montreal Expos, but Ramon's advice to the upset Pedro turned out to be true. Ramon explained how the Dodgers would never make Pedro their starting pitcher, but the Expos will. The Expos do, and Pedro started to make headlines as a great pitcher, possibly even better than his brother.

The two brothers continue to play and excel and win awards--Pedro even more so than Ramon--until they finally play together again, this time on the Red Sox, and this time with Pedro as the star pitcher with heaps of talent and grit. The two return to the Dominican Republic often, where they've paid for a fantastic gathering space for their whole family in the spot on which they first learned to play the game.

I know this post is long enough, but the best part of the book for me is the brotherhood part. I know Kiefer keeps choosing this book because of the story of two brothers, making it to the big leagues together--and the little brother comes out on top. But I hope he's listening to the fact that the brothers don't care who is a bigger star. They love each other fiercely still now. When the boys were young, Ramon always looked out for him, and Pedro was smart enough to recognize this and humble enough to keep working hard. The brotherhood bond is awesome and strange right now for my boys--they can't stand being apart even when they can't figure out how to get along at that minute--but it's so important that they figure it out and trust in and believe in and root for each other...

I hope my boys continue to play baseball and be good team players and role models, but I hope even more they continue to be good brothers to each other.

Matt Tavares has several other great baseball (and non-baseball) picture books. Click HERE for a list of titles.

The Contract by Derek Jeter

The Contract by Derek Jeter and Paul Mantell
Simon and Schuster

Rating: Five stars

Most book bloggers might be focusing on Halloween this week...but the World Series is also happening! There are a whole lot of us who are more excited about the Royals vs. Mets than how many Tootsie Rolls we get to eat. Honestly, I like a good ball game, but it's watching my son Ben's excitement over a ball game that I like even more. 

Because of Ben's excitement and love for baseball, we read The Contract, by Derek Jeter. A little background: Jeter is the starting shortstop for the NY Yankees--and he's also written several books. In his rookie season, he founded the Turn 2 Foundation, an organization that helps promote healthy lifestyles in kids. He's a talented ball player and sure seems like a pretty good guy. (Paul Mantell helped write the book.) The Contract is a novel inspired by Jeter's childhood--how he had these big, lofty dreams from a very young age, and how he set about starting to achieve them.

In the book, the character Derek Jeter is a third grader who writes an essay about his dream of being the starting shortstop for the NY Yankees. He dares to say this dream out loud, and explain how he wants to achieve this dream. Some classmates believe his dream, others laugh. But his parents not only believe in him (and stick up for him when the teacher doesn't take him seriously)--they also help map out a path to achieve his dream. His dad writes up a contract that spells out the guidelines he must follow if he wants to continue playing. The contract includes broad but important rules: Respect others. Family first. Keep your grades up. Play hard. Etc.

Derek is a fine character, though he is a bit of a goody two-shoes, making his character a bit flawless and therefore, not the most authentic around. He only has one minor temper tantrum, despite the fact that his coach favors his own son in the batting lineup and when handing out awards. When life is unfair to character Derek, the third grader takes it all in stride. Although his maturity might be a smidge unrealistic, I like that my son sees this calm response to crises big and small.

I'm all about making good choices--and making them deliberately. I talk with my parent-friends and my kids about how their actions today affect what they can do later in life. This book feeds into that argument, in a great way. Jeter explains that his success in sports came early, when his parents made him buckle down and focus on all the right things--family, school, friendships, sports--and demanded excellence in all these categories. And then (get this!) there were consequences when the contract was broken. 

So, if I do all those things like Jeter's parents do, will my Ben play for the NY Yankees someday? Maybe. Maybe I'll cheering for him when he's in the World Series one day. But I hope he knows I'll be cheering for him no matter what he ends up doing.


P.S. The sequel to this book, Hit and Miss, is fine, too. Not as great as this one, but still a good read with fine lessons about sports and life.

Miracle Mud: Lena Blackburne and the Secret Mud that Changed Baseball by David A. Kelly

Miracle Mud: Lena Blackburne and the Secret Mud that Changed Baseball by David A. Kelly, illustrated by Oliver Dominguez
Millbrook Press

Rating: 5 stars

I love books like this--well-written, true stories that answer the question: What's the story behind ___? I don't know about your kid, but my kids listen to a story like this with a nice dose of disbelief and amusement, and a light switch seems to get turned on inside them. It's the wonder or curiosity switch. And we all know that when a child wonders or gets curious, good things happen.

David A. Kelly has researched and written a fascinating book about the story of "miracle mud." He starts the story around 1900, when a guy named Lena Blackburne tried to play professional baseball, but he just couldn't cut it. Still, he loved the game and wanted to stay involved. So he became a coach.

One day, an umpire complained about the baseballs to Lena Blackburne. The balls were too soggy and soft, making them difficult to throw and even harder to hit. They were soggy because players often soaked the balls in water to make them less shiny and slick. Other players tried to reduce the shine by using shoe polish. That made the balls black. Still other players used spit or tobacco juice. That made the balls stink.

One day, an umpire complained to Lena about the baseballs.

Lena didn't know the answer until he went fishing along the Delaware River in New Jersey. He stepped in thick brown mud that was smooth and gritty. A lightning bulb went off in his head. Lena grabbed a bucket of mud and went back to his team.

He took some baseballs, wiped mud all over them, then wiped them off. They weren't soggy, black, or stinky--but they'd lost their slick shine to them. The players noticed the difference.

And so Lena became a mud farmer--who knew that was a thing--and never told anyone where he got his mud. Still today, this "Lena Blackburn's Baseball Rubbing Mud" is the only thing allowed on major-league balls. Talk about having a corner on the market!

I was pretty incredulous after reading this story. Really? Really?! Kiefer wanted to know if Lena Blackburne was still alive. There's a great Author's Note in the back of this book that helped me out. Nope--Lena died in 1968. His son Jim Bintliff owns, runs, and keeps the secrets of the business today. July is mud-harvesting season. Jim and his crew go out to a spot that's STILL a secret and scoop up the mud, then store it in barrels during the winter.

And...really? They use it today? Yup. The official rules of Major League Baseball (rule 3.01(c)) states that "before a game, an umpire should, among other things, ensure the baseballs to be used are regulation baseballs and 'that they are properly rubbed so that the gloss is removed.'" Usually one of the home team's clubhouse attendants rubs the seventy-two balls with mud before each game.

Here's a neat video about the Texas Rangers, explaining the use of mud in today's baseball games:

My kids are wondering what else they don't know about this game of baseball that our family loves. That's wonder, that's curiosity, that's also the stuff of magic.

The Streak: How Joe DiMaggio Became America's Hero by Barb Rosenstock

The Streak: How Joe DiMaggio Became America's Hero by Barb Rosenstock, illustrated by Terry Widener

Rating: 4 stars

Of course I'm a sucker for a baseball book.  And, like I've written so many times, baseball is a wonderful vehicle for teaching about life--history, character, decision making, consequences...  You name it, you can explain it through baseball.  None of this is very helpful for those of you with kids who dance or play hockey, but... This one goes out to all of you who have, like we do, bats and gloves and balls either in use or planted in the middle of the yard, ready at a moment's notice.

This isn't my favorite baseball book, but it does teach a wonderful American history lesson and provides insight into one of the greats, Joe DiMaggio.

In the summer of 1941, Joe DiMaggio of the New York Yankees began a hitting streak in which America happily got swept up. In one game after another, DiMaggio came to bat and earned hit after hit.  Thousands became followers of this streak, and they didn't have to love the Yankees. Why? Well, it's not like they had a ton of distractions like we do today, and Americans were happy to be distracted that summer because the country was readying itself for war. Up to this point, the biggest streak in American baseball stood at George Sisler's 41 games and Wee Willie Keeler at 44 games. When DiMaggio tied and then surpassed these streaks, everyone took notice.

Now the papers shouted Streak loud and clear,
pushing back news of the war marching overseas.

Rosenstock writes in a thrilling way, and she builds suspense well. This suspense builds nicely to the problem in the book, when DiMaggio's lucky bat, named Betsy Ann, goes missing. Up to this point, she writes as if the streak was a partnership, with equal responsibility going to man and bat. She doesn't talk of the superstition in baseball--or in all sports--but I'm guessing many kids understand the need for a certain bat, a certain hat, certain shoes or certain socks that they need in order to win. She remains missing throughout the game, and the streak looks dead in the water until "DiMaggio went to work anyway." And he got the job done.

It's a good story and I like that baseball is placed accurately in the context of a war that kids will soon learn about.  Even if kids don't fully appreciate the difficulty--the near impossibility--of a streak of 56 runs, this is a fun book to read to any baseball-loving kid (and his big sister). The end of the book is filled with statistics and a longer Author's Notes for parents or kids who want more information.


Baseball books are some of my favorite to review. For a list of all reviewed baseball books, click HERE.

Satch & Me (A Baseball Card Adventure) by Dan Gutman

Satch & Me (A Baseball Card Adventure) by Dan Gutman

Rating: 4.5 stars

Ben is a sports nut.  This is not news for those who know him.  He knows right where the nonfiction sports section is in the library, and he spends most of his library time there, in his happy place.  He happily checks out the same books on baseball, soccer, football, and rugby again and again and again.

In the juvenile fiction section, he goes right to the CHR section, where he chooses a few Matt Christopher books to "read" by himself.  (We've read one together, The Lucky Bat.  Read that review here.)  But when I came across this Baseball Card Adventure series, I couldn't help but share it with him.  He quickly chose one to read together with me at night; I was thrilled he chose Satch & Me.  After reading Something to Prove: The Great Satchel Paige vs the Rookie Joe DiMaggio I wanted to know more about Satch.

The Baseball Card Adventure books all have the same premise: Joe Stoshack, or "Stosh," can travel through time by holding baseball cards from the year to which he wants to travel. In each book, Stosh has a unique reason to want to travel to meet that particular ball player.  In Satch's case, he and his Little League coach want to track the speed of Satch's famous pitch: Just how fast can this guy throw?

Though Scholastic suggests this book for kids in grades three through five, I thought it was completely appropriate for Ben, who enters kindergarten in a little over a month.  There were many things I loved about the book:

• The story started strong at the first page, and Ben was hooked quickly.  He learned the word "cliffhanger" because many of the chapters really did leaving him begging for me to read just one more chapter…that's always a good sign!
• Stosh tells the story in the first person.  He's a normal kid and a likable character as he makes mistakes and weighs decisions and sometimes gets in a bit of trouble.
• As always, I'm awed and grateful by how much I can teach Ben through baseball.  Stosh goes back in time and witnesses segregation and prejudice and bigotry first-hand, and Gutman doesn't shy away from pointing out injustices through Stosh's eyes.  I never once had to change the wording to explain something. I did, however, stop to explain things and answer Ben's many questions...
• Gutman does an excellent job of having his older characters--in this case, Satch and Flip--instill some wisdom in young Stosh.  And, in some instances, Satch teaches Flip a thing or two (mostly about women "The things you do for women you wouldn't do for anything else.  Same with money").  And Stosh has some advice for readers, too, even though he's still mighty young himself.  My favorite line of his: "Sometimes you just have to take a chance and hope you made the smart decision."
• Satchel Paige was an interesting character both in the book and in real life--and an important one.  In the back of the book, Gutman spends a few pages spreading the facts out for the reader.  Paige was the first player from the Negro League to be inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame, and most players who played with him believe him to be the best pitcher in the history of baseball.
• I loved sharing Ben's passion a little every night.  I hear about it all day, yes, but learning about one of the great ball players with him was my kind of fun, and after a phone call with my ball playing grandfather, Ben and I were equally floored to hear that Grandpa played against Satchel Paige and Josh Gibson (another player who pops up in the book).  Neither of us can wait to get the rest of the story from Grandpa!

Things you might want to know before reading this with your child:

• Stosh's parents are divorced.  This fact surfaces a little in each book that we've read (we're reading Jackie & Me now).  They have a good co-parenting relationship, but are not overly chummy.
• In this book, Stosh takes his 70-something, single Little League coach, Flip, back in time with him, and Flip meets a girl and they fall in love. She runs away from her father to catch up with Flip and Stosh, and Stosh considers leaving Flip in the past so he can be with her.  This little romance is appropriate for older kids, but I edited out a few sentences for Ben. (I couldn't do this with Lorelei, who corrects me when I'm reading!

Yesterday I took the kids to the bookstore and let them choose two books or games (or, in Kiefer's case, a mean-looking Lego policeman alarm clock…something that this smiley child who wakes up around 5:30 most mornings definitely does NOT need…).  Ben went right to the "G" area of "Middle Grade Fiction" to see which books from the Baseball Card Adventure series were there.  Only one: Babe & Me.  "That's the one I wanted!" Ben exclaimed with Willy-Wonka gold ticket excitement.

So, looks like I'll soon be reporting back about Babe, too…!

She Loved Baseball by Audrey Vernick

She Loved Baseball: The Effa Manley Story by Audrey Vernick, illustrated by Don Tate

Rating: 4.5 stars

Have your kids ever watched the credits after a show or movie, and asked you who all those people are?  It's always a good moment for me when one of my kids gets to this stage of questioning.  I like helping them realize that it takes a lot of people to make one of their favorite shows.  It takes a team of people to do nearly anything, really, even if there's just one person who seems to get all the credit.

For that reason, I am grateful that we stumbled upon She Loved Baseball: The Effa Manley Story. The book tells the story of a behind-the-scenes woman.  Young Effa moved to New York City after high school at a time when Babe Ruth and the Yankees were all people talked about.  She fell in love with the team, the sport, and with a young man who also loved the Yankees and baseball--Abe Manley.

After the two married they lived in Harlem.  During that time, even in black communities, most businesses were owned by white people, and white people worked in those businesses.  People told her "That's how things are, Effa," but she didn't listen. She organized rallies and protests and boycotts until black people were working in white businesses in Harlem.

Also after they married, they started a team--the Brooklyn Eagles--in the new Negro National League.  Despite the fact that women usually weren't usually part of a business, Effa did all the behind-the-scenes work: "organizing schedules, ordering equipment, arranging transportation." She took care of the men on the team; they called her their "mother hen."

In 1947, Jackie Robinson joined the Brooklyn Dodgers--the first black player in the major leagues.  This was a huge achievement, but…what did it mean for the Negro League?  Major league teams started to turn to Negro League teams for players.  They didn't bother asking whether or not these black ballplayers had contracts.  They didn't bother paying the Negro League team for the ballplayer.

Effa was outraged.  "That's how things are, Effa," people told her.  She refused to believe it, and talked to the press about it.  When Cleveland Indians owner knocked on the Brooklyn Eagles' door for one of their players, Larry Doby, she stood up to him and insisted the team get paid for his contract.  The Indians paid $15,000, and Doby became the first black player in the American League.  After that, Negro League teams always got paid.

Long after this turning point in baseball history, and probably because Effa wrote long letters to them about how much they added to the sport, the Baseball Hall of Fame inducted many Negro League players.  And, in 2006, Effa Manley was the first woman to also be inducted.  "She was recognized for all she did for her players, for her civil rights work, and for getting the major leagues to treat Negro League teams with respect."  Pretty amazing, pretty cool.

There's so much kids can learn from this not-so-traditional baseball story… I would stick around to say more, point out the obvious here and there, but I've got to return this baseball book and all the others I've had on loan from our library.  It's baseball season and I think I've got them all!

P.S.  We like this book by Audrey Vernick.  But we love her Brothers at Bat even more!

H is For Home Run: A Baseball Alphabet by Brad Herzog

H is For Home Run: A Baseball Alphabet by Brad Herzog, illustrated by Melanie Rose

Rating: 4.5 stars

Maybe because I'm a cheapskate, I really like this series of alphabet books published by Sleeping Bear Press.  They appeal to a wide level of readers, so they are wonderful books to grow with and grow into.

Take H is For Home Run.  Newly 3 year old Kiefer can sit and page through it by himself, looking at the bright, big illustrations by Melanie Rose about a sport about which his family is currently focused.  He can pick out the letters that he knows--K, L, B, M, and D…  I can read the first layer of story to him. That first layer is the rhyming text, the two lines dedicated to each letter and, therefore, each baseball-themed thing.  In these lines, Herzog has thrown in as many words that start with that letter, so Kiefer hears that letter again and again, reinforcing the sound the letter makes, as he also looks at the letter on the page.

D is for the diamond, a delightful design
That gives us daring double plays and doubles down the line.

5 1/2 year old Ben can read most of these words himself, so this is a challenging read-alone book for him.  He's still happy to have me read it to him (and I'm happy to read it to him).  And alongside each letter, next to each wonderful illustration, are a few paragraphs that give more details about that baseball-themed thing.  For D, for example, readers learn that a baseball field

is called a diamond because the infield is a square turned on its edge with a base located at each corner. D is also for dugouts.  Generally, the home team's dugout is on the third-base side of the diamond and the visiting team's is on the first-base side. 

The double play is a fielding play in which two outs are recorded.  It might be an infielder "forcing out" a player at second base before throwing out the batter at first base.  Or it might be an outfielder catching a fly ball and then throwing out a runner trying to advance to the next base.  It might even happen when a batter strikes out while a runner is caught stealing. 

D is also for designated hitter (DH).  Since 1973 the American League has used a DH in the lineup to bat in place of the pitcher.  In the National League and Little League, the pitcher bats for himself.

And 7 year old Lorelei can read all of this, maybe to herself or, if he's lucky, to one of her little brothers.

There's something for everyone.  Cheapskate me and Parentingkate me are both happy!


For a complete list of titles of these alphabet books by Sleeping Bear Press, please click HERE.

Take Me Out to the Bat and Ball Factory by Peggy Thomson

Take Me Out to the Bat and Ball Factory by Peggy Thomson, illustrated by Gloria Kamen

Rating: 3.5 stars

A few weeks ago, at my sister's 40th birthday party, I found out that my Uncle Bob and his high school friend are making baseball bats in their garage.  I listened, totally intrigued and fascinated, at the whys and the hows of the story.  I watched a few videos of his bats being turned and smoothed and was just entranced.  This was a part of baseball--a nitty gritty detail that could so easily get overlooked--I really didn't know much about.

I could hardly believe my eyes when, the very next day, the kids and and I were at our local library and this book was propped up on the stacks.  What a coincidence!

I have to be honest: It's not the most well-written book and it's certainly not for everyone.  Thomson tries to create a story around how bats and balls are made in a very The Magic Schoolbus sort of way.  A group of kids travel together (without a parent or teacher, I amusingly noted) to this bat and ball factory to meet Hank.  Hank guides them around the factory, giving them a ton of facts that they smilingly lap up with a few important questions to help Hank tell them even more.

To me, the back history of bats is really interesting: what sort of wood is used and why, what is the history of the size of bats, how long they are dried, which players had out-of-the-ordinary relationships with bats (for example: The Padres' Tony Gwynn used an extra small bat, just 29 inches long; Roberto Clemente got his first bat from a guava-tree branch)?  Thomson also explains how aluminum bats are made, too--with plenty of interesting comparisons between wood and aluminum, and why players choose one over the other.

Then Hank guides the kids to the ball section, and he explains how a chemical, gooey mix is put into a sphere-like mold.  After it hardens, the ball is covered with either fake or real leather and these covers are sewn into place.  Interestingly, when a worker starts to stitch a ball, it takes nearly 45 minutes.  After a whole lot of practice, that time is reduced to 8 or 9 minutes!

There's a lot of information in this book.  I admit: I think it put Ben to sleep--I read it one night to him, and while I was genuinely enthusiastic about and fascinated by nearly every sentence, he didn't protest when I turned the light out after the last page.  His eyes were already closed.  So…maybe this book is best for a slightly older reader.  Or maybe this just is not the best bedtime book!

There Goes Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived by Matt Tavares

There Goes Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived by Matt Tavares

Rating: 5 stars

Ben read the title and retorted: "Wait.  I thought Babe Ruth was the greatest hitter who ever lived!"

Ah, another chance to enhance his life with a little life lesson: the difference between fact and opinion.  And Matt Tavares, in his afterward, explains his bias: His father loved Ted Williams, and grew up following Williams' every move.  How fitting, then, that Tavares wrote an homage to Williams.  Or was it an homage to his father?  Let's face it: both.

And it's a very positive, very respectful homage indeed, full of life lessons for Ben and other kids like the one above.  I admit not to know a whole lot about Ted Williams.  I've not read the recent book The Kid: The Immortal Life of Ted Williams by Ben Bradlee, Jr.  But I've read enough reviews of it and listened to enough of my grandfather's stories to know that he's not exactly my first choice for one of Ben's heroes.  While he was a sensational hitter and his batting average remains to be beaten, he was a brutal, mean man outside of baseball.

The book, of course, says nothing of that.  And that's okay. His life has good lessons for Ben and other boys and girls in this generation.

There Goes Ted Williams speaks of Ted Williams' commitment to baseball--his insistence at being excellent at it.  He practiced and swung and practiced and swung hours a day because he wanted to be the best.  And--whaddya know--he achieved his goal.  He really did become the best.  But his baseball career was interrupted by war: In May 1942, Williams walked away from the spotlight to become a pilot in the navy's V-5 training program.

Williams begins another commitment: this one to his country--and he focuses all of his energy on being excellent at it.  After he finishes his training and is awaiting his orders for combat duty, Japan surrenders.  He can go back to baseball.

And so he does.  In a terrific way, he picks up the bat right where he left it.

Yet his career is interrupted again, this time by the Korean War.  The navy needs pilots, and the navy needs him.  After 39 successful missions, after one emergency landing (which serves as the climax of the book in a gripping way), he goes home.

And Ted Williams picks up the bat once more.

For kids today (am I old enough to start a sentence like that?!), I think there are many good lessons in this great book.  I like how the book teaches how success takes time and effort: it involves a whole lot of practice, a whole lot of putting-in-the-time to achieve a goal.  I like how the book shows how Williams threw himself into his time as a pilot just as much as he threw himself into baseball.  I love how it illustrates his commitment to something even bigger than baseball: his country.

Ted Williams was, just as we all are, terribly and wonderfully human.  Bravo to Matt Tavares for selecting a lot of the good and presenting it so well, in both words and pictures.

Something to Prove: The Great Satchel Paige vs Rookie Joe DiMaggio by Robert Skead

Something to Prove: The Great Satchel Paige vs Rookie Joe DiMaggio by Robert Skead, illustrated by Floyd Cooper

Rating: 4 stars

Most of this book flew over my children's heads like one of Satchel Paige's fast balls.  They just aren't old enough.  They are still learning America's history.  They are still learning what prejudice is, let alone how deep racial prejudices once were--and still are, in many ways.  They are only beginning to understand the concept of "proving something," though I sure hope that they are mostly proving that something to themselves.  But let's face it, it'll be more than themselves at some point in their lives.

Satchel Paige was a sensational black pitcher in the 1930s.  Some say that he was the best pitcher that was around during that heyday of American baseball, and still others say he was the best there ever was--then and now.  He pitched in the Negro League, but he was known to anyone who knew anything about baseball.

That included a young, rookie Joe DiMaggio, who was just getting started in his baseball career.  We turn our heads at the name now, but in the late 1930s he was still being watched, still trying to prove his greatness to agents and team managers and other players and, of course, to himself.

"Now I know I can make it with the Yankees. I finally
got a hit off Ol' Satch," he said.  Satch overheard.

Something to Prove chronicles one game in the life of these two men, when their two lives and two careers crossed paths.  New York Yankees general manager Ed Barrow wanted to see how good DiMaggio was, so he wanted DiMaggio to "face the best."  He called Paige.  He was the best, but "because of the color of his skin, he was not permitted to play in the major leagues."

When they do meet--a black team against a white team (the illustrations by Cooper are beautiful works of art)--it's memorable.  Their meeting is eye-opening; the great DiMaggio fares well, but he shows a deep reverence for the greatness he sees and experiences in the awesome pitches that fly his way.  He hits one of four, and is completely proud of that record because, as DiMaggio himself said throughout his career, Satchel Paige was "the best and fastest pitcher I ever faced."

What happens after this one game is sad and unfair, and hard for kids today to really comprehend (in a good way--they don't yet realize that some things are impossible): DiMaggio goes on to become Great, and Satchel Paige returns to the Negro League to be great.  After Jackie Robinson becomes the first black man to play for the major leagues, Paige finally plays for the major leagues for a brief time--at 42!--for the St. Louis Browns.  It is a book that my kids could walk away from, but the sad and unfair aspects to the story are still with me, weeks after I first read it.  That's how you know a good book from a just-fine one: it gets under your skin.

There's so much to be learned in baseball.  So many conversations with our kids to be had about all of this important history, and while Something to Prove is really a book for second and third graders, I'm still grateful it exists to push us to start talking with our kids, and keep talking with them.

P.S.  For more books by Robert Skead, click HERE.

Three Strikes for Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos

Three Strikes for Rotten Ralph by Jack Gantos

Rating: 3.5 stars

Throwback Thursday…sort of…!

I just don't know about this Rotten Ralph guy.  I'm totally on the fence.  On the one hand, it might be fun to have a character that is naughty and rotten and "makes bad choices" (to use today's parenting lexicon) in order to point out his flaws to my kids.  So that they avoid being naughty and rotten and so they don't "make bad choices."

On the other hand, Ralph is so selfish, haughty, and full of himself I don't like his example lying around my house!

On the other hand (hmm…somehow I have three hands this morning…), I am a huge fan of Jack Gantos' middle grade books.  I think Deadend in Norvelt is a masterpiece of story-telling and writing and I couldn't put down his autobiography Hole In My Life.  But Rotten Ralph and I are not friends--despite Ralph being as old as I am.

Ralph was still dreaming when
the ball thumped him on the head.

In this book (a beginner reader with short, manageable chapters) Ralph and the ever-patient Sarah go out for the team.  Whereas Sarah tries hard, practices, and shows up on time, Ralph is certain of stardom even before he dons a uniform.  Instead of practicing his swing, he practices writing his autograph.  Instead of paying attention on the field, he dreams of stardom and gets bonked with the ball.

Therefore, the outcome is no surprise to the reader: Sarah makes the team while Ralph gets cut.  But Ralph gets a second chance when Sarah's teammate is sick and the coach needs Ralph, now the bat…er, cat…boy, to step up and step in.  He actually gets a hit but doesn't remember to run hard and make the play BEFORE you celebrate your greatness, so…he is tagged out at home plate.

It's Sarah who is the hero with the winning home run.  "You are my superstar," purrs Ralph.  "Oh, no," replies Sarah.  "I'm a team player.  But don't worry, Ralph.  You will always be number one on my team."

I appreciate how Sarah still loves him despite his rotten, ego-driven behavior.  And I like how the book gives ample examples of what NOT to do--I get that sometimes kids listen and learn better that way.  Ben and Kiefer would give this a higher rating because they think Ralph is bad but his full-of-himself ways are hilarious.  Alas, I'm in charge of the typing for now, and I don't love Ralph.

What about you--whose side are you on?

The Lucky Baseball Bat by Matt Christopher

The Lucky Baseball Bat by Matt Christopher

Rating: 5 stars

Throwback Thursday!

Written fifty years ago, this book is hardly cutting-edge.  But it is sweet and classic and wholesome in a "swell" sort of way.  This is the first book by the prolific sports author Matt Christopher--who has a whole shelf of books at our local library.

Marvin is the new kid in town, and he wants to play baseball but doesn't have a glove or bat.  And…Marv is the opposite of talented.  He seems destined for only strike outs.  He misses most balls that come his way.  Then, a nice, older kid down the street gives him the bat and glove that he recently outgrew, and Marvin starts to hit.  He gets really good.  He credits his bat for his good fortune--it's easier to explain good luck than improved skill in Marvin's head.

The inevitable happens (and it's really clear that this is going to happen in this very beginning chapter book): the bat breaks, and Marvin loses his confidence.  Despite feeling low, he rescues a toddler from being hit by a car.  This might seem like a happening from left field, but it is tied in nicely with the story and is actually pretty realistic.  I love how Marvin doesn't just watch an accident happen--he jumps in and tries to help.

While Marvin shrugs off the parents' insistence that they help him in some way, the father of the little boy makes a bat.  He says it's Marvin's lucky bat, just put back together again, all Humpty-Dumpty like.  Marvin believes him and helps his team win the last game of the season--the game that wins all the boys on his team a trip to one game of the World Series.  Only then does the father of the little boy break the news to him: It was a new bat, not his lucky bat.

Marvin realizes that it was his skill and confidence in himself--not luck--that won the game, and he is even more proud of himself.

A simple story, right?  Ben was on the edge of his seat.  "One more chapter, Mommy!"  and "Can we read another?"  We finished it yesterday morning after breakfast while his brother was sleeping off a sleepless night (no comment on the sad fact that I did not get to do the same!).

The nostalgic glimpses made me chuckle: When Marvin is at the height of his hitting with doubles and tripes flying off his bat, a local TV reporter invites him to be on the news.  Marvin's little sister Jeannie gasps in delight and says, "I'm going to tell my two friends!  They even have television sets!"  It was a wonderful opportunity to a) shake my head at the changing times and b) explain to Ben that the then and now realities are very, very different.  Marvin is a good guy--earnest, honest, and takes the high road every chance he gets.  It's great to have a character in a book be this kind and uncomplicated.

This is a great read-aloud book for young kids, especially sports-crazy Ben.

Brothers At Bat by Audrey Vernick

Brothers at Bat: The True Story of an Amazing All-Brothers Baseball Team by Audrey Vernick, illustrated by Steven Salerno

Rating: 5 stars

I love this book.  Love it!

Meet the Acerras: The best way to meet them, methinks, is to go back in time and stand outside their house on a nice Spring day like today (here in Northern Virginia) and count how many boys run out.  Count how many gloves and bats fly out the door with those boys.  Count how many times the back door slaps against the frame as they come out, running, to the ball field.

It'll slap twelve times.  Twelve.  Twelve!  There were twelve baseball-playing brothers.  (And four sisters, too.  They didn't play ball because "back then, most people thought sports were just for boys.")

Their uniforms all said the same thing: Acerras.

Their story is fun and sweet and full of SO many little and big opportunities to compare and contrast today's childhood and yesteryear's childhood. The Acerras' house was crowded, and they entertained themselves, mostly with outdoor sports.  (Those two things are certainly related!)  Smaller house equals more outside play time.  In 1938, the brothers ranged in age from seven to thirty-two.  Their was an Acerra on the high school baseball team for twenty-two years in a row.  The facts are mind-boggling, and smile-inducing.

There were so many brothers that they formed their own semi-pro team and competed against other New Jersey teams.  Their coach?  Dad.  Each brother had their own nickname that matched his own personality. There was no rivalry or fighting--"we stick together," Freddie said.  And when that same guy, Freddie, suffered an accident and lost an eye, his brothers helped him through it and helped him get back on the field.

This is a feel-good book of all feel-good books.  The tight-knit, huge family; the all-American game of baseball; the nostalgic illustrations by Steven Salerno; the gut-wrenching moments when they all went off to war (and came back--each and every one--I have to spill the beans so you don't worry)…  All of this makes for a great read and a huge appreciation for the type of childhood that built characters I know and love.  Characters like my two grandfathers, my dad, my uncles.

The all-brother team always drew big crowds.

I kinda want to buy Brothers At Bat for those characters.  For my Grandpa K, whose excellent playing put him in the Pennsylvania Baseball Hall of Fame (but he went to serve his country rather than join the major leagues).  Or maybe for my other Grandpa, who coached--baseball on the field and life lessons off the field--his three boys and  all the neighborhood boys.  Or maybe for those three boys, who are now my dad and my two uncles.  Or…

Or maybe I'll just read it to Ben, who leapt off the sofa just a dozen minutes ago, where he was comfortably watching an afternoon cartoon, because the neighborhood brothers (all three of them) plus their cousin (all one of him) invited him to play baseball.  And he's out there now on this warm Spring afternoon, throwing and catching and hitting like so many boys before him.

Barbed Wire Baseball by Marissa Moss

Barbed Wire Baseball by Marissa Moss, illustrated by Yuko Shimizu

Rating: 4 stars

There's just so much you can learn through baseball.  I'm talking about sobering American history: what happened to Japanese-Americans during World War II after Pearl Harbor was attacked.

Kenichi Zenimura was born in Japan then immigrated to America when he was eight.  He was small and slight--barely five feet tall and only one hundred pounds!--but fell in love with baseball the first time he saw a ball game.  His parents wanted him to become something more serious and important--a lawyer or doctor, perhaps--but "Zeni" coached and managed and played baseball. He was selected to play with star members of the New York Yankees, and even arranged for Babe Ruth to play in Japan.

But that world collapsed for him when the Japanese
attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941.

But in 1941, when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, his world changed.

As you probably know, but as your children probably yet do not, Japanese-Americans were sent to camps in the west because the government considered them possible spies.  Zeni was heartbroken not to continue his work in baseball, but since that was what gave him joy and made him feel happy, he brought it to the camp.  Zeni mobilized his friends and family and, with many hours of hard labor, built a true baseball field in the dry Arizona camp.

Most of the book is about the building of the field--Moss writes how Zeni was focused on creating a real ballpark, not just a thrown-together one.  "We have to do this right," he explained.  I love the focus on doing a job well and right, with a focus on excellence.  All of this gets you, and got Zeni and his helpers, a huge sense of pride when the job is done.

Zeni is between Lou Gehrig (second from left)
and Babe Ruth at an exhibition game in Fresno, CA

The mood around camp shifted as the first game approached, as people had something to look forward to and enjoy.  People filled the bleachers and spilled over onto the ground, excited to watch as Zeni, his sons, and their friends simply played ball.  And felt free.

This is a really good book, though definitely for an older reader and best read while in your lap--it is sure to raise a few very good, very serious questions, and hopefully a patient parent or grandparent or teacher can answer those questions.

Becoming Babe Ruth by Matt Tavares

Becoming Babe Ruth by Matt Tavares

Rating: 5 stars

I suspect that this will only happen once, and it's happening now: Lorelei and Ben are playing the same sport, and they're on the same team.  They're both playing for the Cincinnati Reds in our local Little League--at the t-ball level.  Lorelei likes it, Ben loves it; they are both soaking up some of the rich history of the oh-so-American, oh-so-tradition-rich sport by the stories they are reading.

Dozens of wonderful nonfiction books exist about baseball that bring out the excitement of a previous era, teach about a famous sportsman, and hold the interest of almost any age of reader.  This is one of those books.

Becoming Babe Ruth came out last year--I read about it in the NYTimes Book Review (click HERE) one Sunday when I actually did read the paper.  The story starts off with a slightly shocking image and with a fact I didn't know: In George Ruth's early years in Baltimore, Maryland, he was a rascal of a kid who skipped school and caused trouble.  Yikes! What else was I about to read my kids?! I wondered as I read this page out loud.

But then the story unfolds: in an effort to straighten him out, George's parents send him to the strict St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys.  There, he first chafed under the tight control...until he found baseball.  He was soon slugging away nearly every afternoon, and the balance of finding something he loved (and that something he loved came along with someone he loved, the brother/coach of the team) made the strictness of the school bearable.  Years later, after he'd been playing baseball there for a decade or so, a scout came to watch him.  He was signed onto the Baltimore Orioles the next day.  While he played for them (for just half a season, before being traded to the Red Sox), he often returned to St. Mary's to play with his pals after practicing all day.  Also while playing for the Orioles, he got his nickname "Babe," which obviously stuck.

He got traded to the Red Sox, pitched less and slugged more, and became a sensation unlike any other ball player had before.  Tavares doesn't highlight his trade to the Yankees, and doesn't bring up the curse that trade famously causes (you and your child can--and should!--read about that in the fine, informative The Legend of the Curse of the Bambino).

Instead, Tavares highlights a story that highlights Ruth's character--which gave me the opportunity to talk with Ben about the importance of being a good man while also being a fantastic ball player.  While Babe Ruth was at his peak, out slamming balls left and right in any field in which he played, he got word that there had been a fire at St. Mary's.  Everything burned to the ground.  He was shocked and concerned--this was his home for so many years, and he loved it.  He returned and figured out a way to help.  He took the St. Mary's baseball team on tour with him--letting them lap up hot dogs and ice cream like they never had before, and letting them soak up games as they traveled around with the Yankees for a good part of the season. At the games, Babe Ruth asked people to donate money to have St. Mary's rebuilt.  They did, and St. Mary's was, in fact, rebuilt.

This is a fantastic book about a sportsman every kid needs to know about--a must-read for sure.

There's so much to love about this sport even if, like me, all the joy of playing it comes from pitching to your kid and watching the joy and pride wash over his face when he actually hears the SMACK of the bat meeting the ball.  It's really the first time in parenting when I've sat on the side and watched my children being coached (by my great friend and great coach for this sponge-like yet attention-challenged age group).  I'm learning so much about it all.

Babe Ruth Saves Baseball! by Frank Murphy

Babe Ruth Saves Baseball! by Frank Murphy, illustrated by Richard Walz

Rating: 5 stars

"Everyone knows something about George Herman Ruth," author Frank Murphy writes at the start of this Step 3 Easy Reader.  And it's true.  At the very least, you know that Babe Ruth was one of the best--if not The Best--ball players in the history of the game.

But did you know that he saved baseball?  I sure didn't.

Murphy tells the story of a time when things sure seemed a whole lot simpler--the early 20th century when baseball stars were heroes, and families gathered 'round the radio to listen to their favorite teams play when they couldn't get to the ballpark to see them and root them on in person.

In 1919, Babe Ruth was a Red Sox pitcher-turned-home run star; he hit home runs in every state he visited and played in, and people counted his home runs across America.  He was becoming a sensation, no doubt. Also in that year, the White Sox and Cincinnati Reds played in the World Series.  "But some White Sox players cheated.  People all across America found out.  People were shocked.  Many fans stopped going to the ball fields."

These devastated, disappointed fans needed something, or some one, to bring the spark back to baseball.  To give them a reason to care about the sport and the individuals who played it.  And that person could be, and was, Babe Ruth.

In 1920, Babe Ruth (famously or infamously, though Murphy doesn't make any fuss about it) moved to New York City to play for the Yankees.  He started talking about how many home runs he was going to hit that season--50, not the measly 29 he had hit the year prior--and got people curious and then excited to see if he could keep his word.  He sure did.  He hit 54.

Babe Ruth made kids fall in love with baseball all over again--I never knew that he signed hundreds of baseballs and then hid them around the city for people to find (hey, Nats, my son Ben thinks it'd be cool to do that again!).  A new ballpark--Yankee Stadium--was built and called "The House that Ruth Built." Guess who said he aimed to hit the first home run in the stadium?  Yup.  Babe. And guess who did what he said he'd do?  Yup.  Babe.

I've read this book three times to the kids, though Lorelei and Ben could easily read it by themselves.  At the end of each book, we're all in awe.  We all look up to Babe and the image he deliberately crafted for himself.  We talked about the World Series in which players cheated, and how important it is to be honest and how great it was that Babe Ruth did what he said he was going to do--that's how you gain people's trust.

There's so much kids (and their mamas!) can learn from this sport--both the history of it and actually playing it today.  I'm intrigued by that as I watch Ben and now Lorelei practice hitting, catching, and throwing their way through practices and ball games.  Of course I want to provide the cultural history, too, by reading books like this one to them.  But when it comes down to it, I know that Ben is just curious about how hard he can hit the ball, how high he can hit that ball, and how far he can hit that ball.  Just like Babe Ruth.

(To read my other reviews on baseball books, click HERE.)

Take Me Out to the Yakyu by Aaron Meshon

Take Me Out to the Yakyu by Aaron Meshon

Rating: 5 stars

This book manages to tie together a whole lot of what I love about life (learning about and appreciating another culture) within the basic story line of what Ben loves about life (baseball).

This is a children's book done really, really well.  A boy loves baseball: in America, and in Japan.  As we turn the pages, on the left we see an American baseball scene and on the right we see a Japanese baseball scene.  His American pop pop takes him to watch baseball; his Japanese ji ji takes him to watch yakyu.  In America, Pop-Pop gets him a giant foam hand; in Japan Ji Ji gets him a giant plastic horn.

In America, the pitcher throws a 95-mile-per-hour fastball.
In Japan, the toushu throws a 153-kilometer-per-hour sokkyu.

The book has a wonderful rhythm to it, and the examples are simple and straightforward, all things that most kindergarten-ish-age kids can understand and relate to.  The simple comparing and contrasting that is happening about a game that we kids all know about and most love is fantastic.  This book has been written and/or edited well, and boils down the huge cultural differences between two countries' love of the same sport in such a manageable, impressive way.  And with cute illustrations to boot!

(Speaking of illustrations, chances are that you've seen Aaron Meshon's work before.  He's designed a whole lot of stuff for Crocodile Creek and Mudpuppy, brands we know and love in our house.  Click here to see his stuff.  We have several neat-o puzzles and placemats by Meshon, so the illustrations in this book were familiar to us in a great way.)

Here I am, pointing out...something interesting!

Ben's fifth birthday was yesterday, and this is the book I read to his junior kindergarten class.  They seemed to like it a whole lot, even though it was the item on the schedule that stood between them and cookies.  One of Ben's classmate is Japanese and has been to Japan.  Alas, he's not yet been to a baseball game there--only his big brother has!  Anyway, it was a great book for a group of kids to read and talk about a little...they even broke out in song ("Take Me Out to the Ball Game")!

If I had them on my hands, I'd shake my foam #1 finger around and blow my giant plastic horn to get everyone's attention, then holler out: "You did great, Aaron Meshon!  What a fantastic first children's book!  More, please!"

Baseball Tips by Dean Hughes and Tom Hughes

Baseball Tips: A Simple, Surefire System to Make You the Best Player You Can Be by Dean Hughes and Tom Hughes, illustrated by Dennis Lyall

Rating: 5 stars

About a month ago, Ben shyly asked our friend and librarian Miss Sharon where the baseball section was located.  When looking for a book on dinosaurs, we realized that there were plenty of children's books tucked within the nonfiction sections of the library.  He wondered if there were any good baseball books out beyond the well-known children's section.  So he asked.  And there are!

This is one of his best finds yet.  It turned out to be the first chapter book he and I read together.  It isn't exactly a classic chapter book but it is a) a book, b) has chapters, and c) about something he is very, very interested in.

Baseball Tips is chock full of great facts and lessons that you cross-your-fingers-hope your child's little league coach will teach them.  And you cross-your-fingers-hope that your son or daughter will listen to him or her and really, really allow the wisdom of his words to sink in.  The language is simple and straightforward, as if a grandfatherly coach was talking to a few boys who had taken a knee to pay closer attention.

The book simply introduces the game of baseball to young kids.  There are four parts: Up to Bat, In the Field, Positions, and Attitude.  Within each there are a few chapters.  For example, in the Positions part, there are chapters on Pitching, Catching, First Base, Infield, Outfield.

Within each chapter, Dean Hughes writes the "Big Three" rules for that topic.  (He gently mocks himself a bit about the fact that there are big three's for everything he writes.  It is part of his casual, approachable style.)  Here are the Big Three of Base Running:

The Big Three of Base Running:
1.  Round the bases.
2.  Always run hard.
3.  Be alert.

And then he talks about each one, describes it in easy terms.  Words mainly describe the ideas, but also plenty of diagrams and illustrations to show what he's talking about, too.  He points out the obvious in the best ways... He makes sure that kids know that the obvious facts (such as "always run hard") is actually what they think of the least, but it is focusing on these details that turn a decent player into a great one.  And I had to bite my tongue to keep from explaining to Ben that the lessons Hughes was writing apply to lots of other sports and also life itself.

The section entitled "Always Run Hard:"

This might sound too silly to talk about.  But it's not.  Every team would score more runs if all the players ran hard all the time.

You hit a ground ball right to the shortstop.  You figure it's an easy out.  But it's easy to miss a grounder.  And that shortstop has a long throw to make.  So run hard and force the shortstop to hurry a little.

I loved reading this with Ben.  While I love to run and Crossfit and try out new sports, I'm not much of a sports-watcher.  And the highlight of my one season of softball as a kid was catching a fly ball with my forehead (I only joined the team because my best friend Stacey was on it, and I was moving soon so I wanted to hang out with her).  It was fun learning the details of the game with Ben in the comfort of his room, a safe spot where he could ask questions.  He often said, "I know everything about baseball!" or that sort of thing, and I gently reminded him that the very best players always believe that they always have something to learn, something on which they could improve, something yet to truly master.  "Stay open to it all," I said, "by realizing you have more to learn."

This book should NOT be out of print.  Get it from your library, eBay, or through a used book seller.  It should be given to all little kids as they start the sporty side of their lives.  It is full of lots of information that kids need to take the time to learn while NOT on the field, but also full of lessons in life that you can learn from baseball.  And isn't that what sports is all about?

Let's Play Baseball! by Charles R. Smith, Jr.

Let's Play Baseball! by Charles R. Smith, Jr., illustrated by Terry Widener

Rating: 3.5 stars

Do you know the monkey-see-monkey-do effect?  If you do, I know you've got more than one kid.  And, like me, you might have more than one boy.  I know that girls see and then do just like boys, but...I'm shocked at and amused by the speed in which Kiefer repeats something Ben does--especially if that Something gets a hug or concerned look or, in most cases, something on the laugh-o-meter...  Anything from a hidden smile to outright belly laugh will get repeated twice.

And so, as Ben is into baseball, Kiefer is also into baseball!  Not shocking!

Let's Play Baseball! is a sturdy book--not as strong as a board book, but heftier than a hardback--that will withstand many reads, dozens of T-ball practices, and way too many trips to the dirty dugout.  It is a simple rhyme from a baseball's perspective inviting a boy to go outside and play ball:

THROW me...CATCH me, again and again.
PITCH me, HIT me...into the wind!
BLAST ME OFF your bat, into the sky...
SEE my red stitches SPIN as I fly.

Not much to it, in a really good way.  Perfect for the little brother aspiring to be his big brother--that's about as classic as the game of baseball itself.

Dino-Baseball by Lisa Wheeler

 Dino-Baseball by Lisa Wheeler, illustrated by Barry Gott

Rating: 4.5 stars

Of all the baseball books we have in the house right now (14 at the last count), this is Ben's favorite.  Lisa Wheeler was smart to match two things that young boys really love--dinosaurs and baseball--and create a rhyme that captures the excitement of a nail-biter of a baseball game.

The Green Sox and the Rib-Eye Reds battle it out on the baseball diamond, their reptilian bodies funnily shoved into uniforms usually reserved for human players.  Barry Gott does a great job with the illustrations; I especially love how he catches the frustration and excitement (depending which team you're rooting for) of an out.  The illustrations can be a confusing jumble, especially if the gigantic brachiosaurus is involved and spread out on two pages instead of one.  We're never quite sure of his position because he spills out onto the whole field...!

I also like how Wheeler throws in some real aspects of baseball that have been fun to explain to Ben.  On the top of my list is the emphasis on good manners and sportsmanship, or ELSE:

The Green Sox manager's irate,
throws his hat and kicks home plate.
He calls the ump a nasty name
and gets ejected from the game.

Yup, without any warnings!  That's real life for you, I told Ben.  Good manners or you can't play!  Other little things include fun baseball slang and traditions--"good-bye ball" for home run, the seventh-inning stretch hot dog run...things like that.

I've read this book twice daily for the past three days, and it is going into Ben's baseball-themed backpack to share with his class after I click "Publish" on this blog post, so...it's a hit!