An outstanding blend of history, sports, and coming of age: not to be missed.
It’s 1939, and an African American tween in North Carolina is looking forward to following his older brother and now-deceased father into the Negro Baseball Leagues.
Twelve-year-old Cato Jones desperately wants to be a great pitcher, just like his beloved father, Daddy Mo. Cato and his teammates go see the impressive new (but whites-only) ballfield, and they can’t resist trying it out. But when they’re accused of causing damage, Cato knows his denial won’t be enough to challenge a white person’s lie. Gradually Cato learns that Daddy Mo and Luke Blackburn, the white man who owns the field, were friends, but no one will share what happened on the night Daddy Mo died. Mr. Luke agrees to a game between the Black and white teams, an event disrupted by racial threats. The racist undercurrents in town go back decades, and some seek to use these divisions to sow even more discord. All of that seems unimportant when Isaac, Cato’s brother, arrives home, the victim of a terrible beating. Debut author Headen has crafted a highly engaging novel that skillfully and believably weaves actual events into the story. The energy of sports and Cato’s drive to excel propel the narrative. Family and community dynamics reflect the times but still allow today’s readers to connect with Cato and his friends.
An outstanding blend of history, sports, and coming of age: not to be missed. (author’s note, historical notes, timeline, resources, further reading) (Historical fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780823453788
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
The three way chats, in which they are joined by other animals, about web spinning, themselves, other humans—are as often...
A successful juvenile by the beloved New Yorker writer portrays a farm episode with an imaginative twist that makes a poignant, humorous story of a pig, a spider and a little girl.
Young Fern Arable pleads for the life of runt piglet Wilbur and gets her father to sell him to a neighbor, Mr. Zuckerman. Daily, Fern visits the Zuckermans to sit and muse with Wilbur and with the clever pen spider Charlotte, who befriends him when he is lonely and downcast. At the news of Wilbur's forthcoming slaughter, campaigning Charlotte, to the astonishment of people for miles around, spins words in her web. "Some Pig" comes first. Then "Terrific"—then "Radiant". The last word, when Wilbur is about to win a show prize and Charlotte is about to die from building her egg sac, is "Humble". And as the wonderful Charlotte does die, the sadness is tempered by the promise of more spiders next spring.
The three way chats, in which they are joined by other animals, about web spinning, themselves, other humans—are as often informative as amusing, and the whole tenor of appealing wit and pathos will make fine entertainment for reading aloud, too.Pub Date: Oct. 15, 1952
ISBN: 978-0-06-026385-0
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1952
PERSPECTIVES
SEEN & HEARD
An emotional, much-needed historical graphic novel.
Sandy and his family, Japanese Canadians, experience hatred and incarceration during World War II.
Sandy Saito loves baseball, and the Vancouver Asahi ballplayers are his heroes. But when they lose in the 1941 semifinals, Sandy’s dad calls it a bad omen. Sure enough, in December 1941, Japan bombs Pearl Harbor in the U.S. The Canadian government begins to ban Japanese people from certain areas, moving them to “dormitories” and setting a curfew. Sandy wants to spend time with his father, but as a doctor, his dad is busy, often sneaking out past curfew to work. One night Papa is taken to “where he [is] needed most,” and the family is forced into an internment camp. Life at the camp isn’t easy, and even with some of the Asahi players playing ball there, it just isn’t the same. Trying to understand and find joy again, Sandy struggles with his new reality and relationship with his father. Based on the true experiences of Japanese Canadians and the Vancouver Asahi team, this graphic novel is a glimpse of how their lives were affected by WWII. The end is a bit abrupt, but it’s still an inspiring and sweet look at how baseball helped them through hardship. The illustrations are all in a sepia tone, giving it an antique look and conveying the emotions and struggles. None of the illustrations of their experiences are overly graphic, making it a good introduction to this upsetting topic for middle-grade readers.
An emotional, much-needed historical graphic novel. (afterword, further resources) (Graphic historical fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5253-0334-0
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021
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