A playful baseball story with a helping of history.
Forget bacon and eggs—Milwaukee mornings during World War II began with Brewers baseball.
Before the United States entered the war, a young Black boy named Jimmy loved walking to the stadium with his Ma and Pop to watch the Milwaukee Brewers play. But in 1941, Pop joins the Navy and Ma starts to work nights at the factory as women across the country become part of the workforce. Jimmy misses going to baseball games. One evening, he’s surprised by an offer of free tickets from the Brewers owner himself, Mr. Bill Veeck. Jimmy declines because his Ma is at work, giving Veeck an idea. Soon the news breaks that the Brewers will play morning games and offer free admission for night-shift workers. At the first game, fans are delighted when Brewers coach Red Smith pops out of a four-poster bed right in the center field, clad in his pajamas, just before the first pitch. Vendors even sell coffee and cornflakes instead of frankfurters and popcorn. Though Jimmy and his family are fictionalized, a detailed author’s note explains the history of the Brewers’ morning games and addresses the choice to center the story on a Black protagonist, drawing attention to the often-overlooked Black women who joined the wartime workforce. Energetic scenes are described in upbeat prose and sketched with digitally rendered permanent marker outlines and a vintage colorway that evokes the period.
A playful baseball story with a helping of history. (bibliography) (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Feb. 17, 2026
ISBN: 9781623545703
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A holiday outing that doesn’t quite satisfy.
In this follow-up to singer Parton and co-author Perl’s Billy the Kid Makes It Big (2023), literal and figurative bumps in the road imperil the touring canine country star’s promise to be home for Christmas.
Inspired by one of Parton’s holiday songs, the tale sees Billy, a small brown French bulldog, and bandmates Bo, Buster, and Binky boarding a tour bus for “pawsome” glimpses of natural wonders along with meetings with fans and “puparazzi.” Then, although Billy has sent many letters home promising to be there for the holiday, an invitation to play Barkafeller Center on Christmas Day instantly changes his tune. “Billy was happy. Though he still felt a little…he wasn’t sure what.” Readers may be excused for having mixed feelings about his mixed feelings, not to mention his tersely unapologetic note to the folks. But when, thanks to a bus-busting rock in the road on Christmas Eve, it looks like the band will have to contrive their own celebration (“Silent night, howly night”), Billy remembers that he started making music in the first place for his loved ones. He has no problem bagging the big concert (Fans? What fans? Contract? What contract?) when Dolly herself rolls up in her own bus to offer a ride back to his “Tennessee mountain home” in time for a small show for “the most important audience in the world.” While Billy cuts an endearing figure in Haley’s cartoonish illustrations, his willingness to disappoint first family, then fans may have readers feeling less than cheery.
A holiday outing that doesn’t quite satisfy. (lyrics to Parton’s “Comin’ Home for Christmas”) (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9780593755006
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: Sept. 28, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
IN THE NEWS
An early reader that kids will want to befriend.
In an odd-couple pairing of Bear and Chipmunk, only one friend is truly happy to spend the day at the beach.
“Not me!” is poor Chipmunk’s lament each time Bear expresses the pleasure he takes in sunning, swimming, and other activities at the beach. While controlled, repetitive text makes the story accessible to new readers, slapstick humor characterizes the busy watercolor-and-ink illustrations and adds interest. Poor Chipmunk is pinched by a crab, buried in sand, and swept upside down into the water, to name just a few mishaps. Although other animal beachgoers seem to notice Chipmunk’s distress, Bear cheerily goes about his day and seems blithely ignorant of his friend’s misfortunes. The playful tone of the illustrations helps soften the dynamic so that it doesn’t seem as though Chipmunk is in grave danger or that Bear is cruel. As they leave at the end of the book Bear finally asks, “Why did you come?” and Chipmunk’s sweet response caps off the day with a warm sunset in the background.
An early reader that kids will want to befriend. (Early reader. 5-7)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-8234-3546-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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