It's April and baseball has begun! A lifelong fan, baseball is still my favorite sport. My team? The Yankees (although I do admit to an affection for the Mets). Baseball has always been very big in my family—my parents were huge Brooklyn Dodger fans. I love all things baseball--the history, the anecdotes, the players, the memorabilia. I love the slow pace that belies the excitement and tension every fan knows. And on this especially fine, summer-like April day, I'm really in a baseball kind of mood. I feel the warm sunshine, hear birds singing and lawn mowers humming and quite naturally my thoughts turn to....books! Consider the following lineup:
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson by Bette Bao Lord
In 1947, a Chinese child comes to Brooklyn where she becomes Americanized at school, in her apartment building, and by her love for baseball.
We Are the Ship by Kadir Nelson
Using an "Everyman" player as his narrator, Kadir Nelson tells the story of Negro League baseball from its beginnings in the 1920s through the decline after Jackie Robinson crossed over to the majors in 1947.
Mighty Jackie: The Strike-Out Queen by Marissa Moss
In 1931, seventeen-year-old Jackie Mitchell pitches against Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig in an exhibition game, becoming the first professional female pitcher in baseball history.
The Brooklyn Nine by Alan Gratz
Follows the fortunes of a German immigrant family through nine generations, beginning in 1845, as they experience American life and play baseball.
Since April is National Poetry Month, I've included some baseball poetry books:
Ernest L. Thayer's Casey at the Bat: A ballad of the Republic sung in the year 1888 illustrated by Christopher Bing
The immortal poem packaged in a scrapbook format; this should be read from endpaper to endpaper.
That Sweet Diamond by Paul Janeczko
A collection of poems, including "Before the Game," "Catcher Sings the Blues," "How to Spit," and "Double Play," capture the experiences of the game of baseball.
Perhaps I will see you around this summer, at Yankee Stadium (or possibly Citi Field).
Posted by Sue Ann
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