Hitting off our feature: Ways to Give a Book, I'd suggest a brand new baseball glove
and the fantastic book Six Innings
, by James Preller.Six Innings
by James Preller
NY: Square Fish, 2010
hardback: Feiwel & Friends, 2008
ages 9 - 12
available from Amazon
Two teams battle for the little league championship baseball game, in this gripping sports novel. Sam is the game’s announcer – he’s injured and so can’t play, but he lives through each moment of the game.Kids will love the way Preller captures the rhythms of the game, routine plays, surprises and strategic moves. It’s full of suspense and excitement as you root for each team.
I really loved how the story brought you into how different players felt at each small moment of the game, play by play. As you get into the story, you realize that Sam’s life has been upended by bone cancer, and he’s struggling with more than typical injuries. But his friendships come through in the end.
James Preller has a wonderful site and blog to check out. He's a tremendously versatile author, writing short chapter books for young readers (the Jigsaw Jones
series) and serious, thought-provoking novels for young adults (Bystander
).The review copy came from my personal library. If you make a purchase using the Amazon links on this site, a small portion will go to Great Kid Books (at no cost to you). Thank you for your support.
Hey, thanks for the kind words -- I really appreciate them.
ReplyDeleteAbout the cancer aspect: It's largely based on the experiences of my oldest son, Nick, now 17 and healthy as a horse!
And yes, please stop on by my blog. It's nonstop fun over there, 24/7.
James Preller
Thank you, James, for stopping by. I'm so glad to hear your son is healthy as a horse now. That aspect of the book was powerful for me to read about - I found it both believable and not overdone, just the right balance for kids. I hadn't known that it came from your family's experience, but that adds a richness to my reading. Thanks again for stopping by.
ReplyDeleteMary Ann