You Never Heard of Willie Mays?!

You Never Heard of Willie Mays?!
by Jonah Winter & Terry Widener
Schwartz & Wade, 2013. Unpaged. Biography.

The Say Hey Kid comes up big in this terrific picture book biography of the boy from Westfield, Alabama who would become perhaps the greatest all-around baseball player ever. Mays started out in the Negro Leagues with the Chattanooga Choo-Choos and then helped the Birmingham Black Barons win the pennant. After Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier for the big leagues, Willie Mays joined the New York Giants in the Polo Grounds and in his first at bat there, hit the ball out of the park, literally, against Warren Spahn, for cryin' out loud. The rest is history and that history is beautifully well written by Jonah Winter and beautifully well illustrated by Terry Widener. A terrific follow up to this dynamic duo's Sandy Koufax biography, You Never Heard of Willie Mays?! is a great book for young baseball fans and kids who should know the history of America's Pastime. Plus, the holographic cover shows Willie's sweet swing over and over, the ball flying off the end of the page and into the seats.

Comments

Review: Faker

Faker By Gordon Korman New York: Scholastic Press, 2024. Fiction. 214 pages. 12-year-old Trey is used to starting over at a new school -- he has the routine perfectly memorized: make new friends, introduce his dad to the wealthy parents of his new friends, and "Houdini" themselves out of there before they get caught running their latest scam. Trey's dad is a master con artist, and Trey has just been promoted to full-partner. Their new scheme for the next big score brings them to the affluent suburb of Boxelder, TN where Trey's dad has cooked up a fake electric car company for investors to buy into. The only problem is that Trey is starting to grow tired of moving around and never putting down roots, especially after forming a fast friendship with Logan and developing a crush on Kaylee, a socially conscious girl in his class. As Trey longs for a normal life, is there any way he can convince his dad to get out of the family business? Gordon Korman is a perennial favorit

Review: The Frindle Files

Frindle Files By Andrew Clements New York: Random House, 2024. Fiction. 198 pages. In 1996 Andrew Clements wrote a story about a kid who invented the word “frindle” (another word for “pen.”) The Frindle Files is the sequel that takes place many years later. Josh is a student in Mr. N’s class. He and his friends can’t stand the fact that Mr. N makes them all write their homework down on paper with a “blue or black pen” and “neatness counts.” Josh is a computer geek and loves to do all his homework on the computer. In the midst of trying to find a way to make Mr. N accept the students' desire to do homework online, Josh comes across some information about Mr. N that links him to the word “frindle.” Now Josh and his best friend must decide what to do with the information and if they are willing to stand up to Mr. N’s antiquated way of doing homework. Kids who love the original book will highly enjoy this new edition. It is a continuation to the story in that it shows what ha

Review: Life After Whale

Life After Whale Written by Lynn Brunelle Illustrated by Jason Chin New York: Holiday House, 2024. Informational. Have you ever wondered what happens after a whale dies? In this beautiful book, you'll discover what happens for years after a whale's death. The book begins by introducing the blue whale and talking a little about its life. It moves quickly on to a whale's death, where his body first falls to the very bottom of the ocean floor. You'll meet the scavengers, first big then smaller as the years progress that eat the whale's decomposing body until finally it is used as a food source for krill which are then eaten by blue whales. In addition to being an excellent resource to discussing the animal circle of life, this book is a work of art. Jason Chin's watercolor and gauche illustrations will have readers dissecting every detail and flipping through for a further look. Kids who love animal facts will be absolutely enthralled by this tale.

Provo Library Children's Book Blog

Search This Blog