Hitting

School Library Journal

Gr 5-8-- Three full-sized books that offer alternatives to Sullivan's Better Baseball for Boys and Better Baseball for Girls (both Putnam, 1984), for slightly older readers. Although there are no indexes, information is easy to find. The short chapters break skills into logical steps, further amplified and explained by the black-and-white photographs that vary in size and placement. Photos are occasionally muddy; boys, major and minor league players, and an occasional girl are depicted. There are no diagrams. Baseball uses an effective, question-and-answer format to cover the basics of offensive and defensive play as well as strategy and training. Hitting and Pitching are clearly presented, in-depth looks at standard techniques and schools of thought on how to hit, pitch, and play baseball. The authors include comments from coaches, Hall of Famers, and stars to complement the straightforward explanations. Both books present the techniques as sound, recommended theories, not hard-and-fast rules. All three include clear warnings about things that can be dangerous to young athletes, such as certain exercises or pitches that require twisting the arm. --Denise Krell, New York Public Library