Jackie's Bat
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Overview
EXTRA
Superstars hit the big leagues! Two-time Caldecott Honor artist Brian Pinkney and award-winning author Marybeth Lorbiecki take the field in this carefully crafted, fictionalized account of how Jackie Robinson broke through professional baseball's color barrier.
Synopsis
EXTRA
Superstars hit the big leagues! Two-time Caldecott Honor artist Brian Pinkney and award-winning author Marybeth Lorbiecki take the field in this carefully crafted, fictionalized account of how Jackie Robinson broke through professional baseball's color barrier.
Publishers Weekly
Narrated by the Brooklyn Dodgers' white batboy, Joey, Lorbiecki's (Sister Anne's Hands) heartwarming tale set in 1947 tells two parallel stories. The first is Jackie Robinson's difficult but ultimately triumphant first season in the major leagues, and the other is Joey's challenging, but also triumphant, battle against his own racism. With understated simplicity, Joey recounts the numerous indignities Robinson endures: taunts from opposing teams, pitchers aiming at him, hate mail, separate hotels and some insults inflicted by the batboy himself (e.g., Joey cleans the shoes of every player except Robinson because, the boy thinks to himself, "Pops says it ain't right,/ a white boy serving a black man"). Robinson confronts Joey: "There's people out there who don't/ treat me as a man 'cause my skin is black/.... They don't know what a man is." Joey chronicles Robinson's gradual progression from outsider to "one of the guys" as his teammates start defending and working with him. Foreground figures appear outlined in thick brushstrokes in Pinkney's full-bleed spreads, while background structures and people appear in paler lines and impressionistic dabs of color. The final scenes depict Robinson offering Joey his hand to shake, "one Dodger to another," and Pops wearing an "I'm for Jackie" button, saying, "That man's earned his place in history." These moments give added emotional weight to this straightforward but often moving re-imagining of how an American hero's struggle and achievement helped transform a nation. Ages 5-8. (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
Editorials
Publishers Weekly
Narrated by the Brooklyn Dodgers' white batboy, Joey, Lorbiecki's (Sister Anne's Hands) heartwarming tale set in 1947 tells two parallel stories. The first is Jackie Robinson's difficult but ultimately triumphant first season in the major leagues, and the other is Joey's challenging, but also triumphant, battle against his own racism. With understated simplicity, Joey recounts the numerous indignities Robinson endures: taunts from opposing teams, pitchers aiming at him, hate mail, separate hotels and some insults inflicted by the batboy himself (e.g., Joey cleans the shoes of every player except Robinson because, the boy thinks to himself, "Pops says it ain't right,/ a white boy serving a black man"). Robinson confronts Joey: "There's people out there who don't/ treat me as a man 'cause my skin is black/.... They don't know what a man is." Joey chronicles Robinson's gradual progression from outsider to "one of the guys" as his teammates start defending and working with him. Foreground figures appear outlined in thick brushstrokes in Pinkney's full-bleed spreads, while background structures and people appear in paler lines and impressionistic dabs of color. The final scenes depict Robinson offering Joey his hand to shake, "one Dodger to another," and Pops wearing an "I'm for Jackie" button, saying, "That man's earned his place in history." These moments give added emotional weight to this straightforward but often moving re-imagining of how an American hero's struggle and achievement helped transform a nation. Ages 5-8. (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.Children's Literature
This fictionalized account of Jackie Robinson's first season with the Brooklyn Dodgers is told from the possible viewpoint of a young white batboy. Joey had been attending games since he was tiny, but he knows that this 1947 season is going to be the best ever for him. He gets to go right into the locker room. When Robinson arrives, Joey points out the folding chair and nail assigned to him instead of a locker. Then Joey continues on with his tasks of distributing uniforms and polishing shoes. He skips one pair, however. His dad has told him that it is just not right for a white person to be of any service to a black man. Historic incidents from the season are related from Joey's viewpoint as he comes to respect and then to truly like Jackie Robinson. Robinson is depicted as a proficient ball player who is determined to maintain his own self respect, as he earns the admiration of others. An "Afterword" summarizes Robinson's many accomplishments and honors. A "Note from the Author" authenticates Robinson's personal perseverance in continuing on with baseball in spite of initial rejection by his teammates, death threats, and hate mail. Pinkney's watercolor illustrations resemble sketches, with featured figures outlined in black in the foreground and impressionist swaths of color in the background. A fitting and worthy tribute to this brave pioneer in the field of baseball. 2006, Simon & Schuster, Ages 5 to 8.—Phyllis Kennemer, Ph.D.