A well-pitched celebration of talent, perseverance, and the power of representation.
In a tiny town in northern Mexico, a young pitcher winds up and sparks a cultural phenomenon.
The youngest of 12 children in Etchohuaquila, Mexico, Fernando Valenzuela loves playing baseball. Later, pitching in the Mexican League, he catches the attention of a Los Angeles Dodgers scout; he’s signed to the team in 1979. At 18, Fernando heads to California to chase his dream. On opening day, the nervous rookie fills in for an injured teammate and begins an unprecedented streak of complete games due to his famous screwball pitch, giving rise to “Fernandomania.” Latine baseball fans who face discrimination in Southern California rejoice in seeing an immigrant on the pitcher’s mound. Far from home, navigating a new language, and even left without work during a players’ strike, Fernando nevertheless keeps his composure on the field. A tense, pitch-by-pitch finale captures Fernando leading the Dodgers from behind to defeat the Yankees and clinch the World Series in his rookie season. Despite uneven pacing that skims Fernando’s early life in favor of a suspenseful final game, this book is a grand slam for young baseball fans. Parra’s acrylic illustrations have a retro Americana feel, using muted, dusty pastels balanced with a few bold, primary-adjacent accents, giving them a sun-faded warmth that complements Fernando’s inspirational journey.
A well-pitched celebration of talent, perseverance, and the power of representation. (author’s and illustrator’s notes, more information, bibliography, photo) (Picture-book biography. 6-9)Pub Date: March 24, 2026
ISBN: 9781662680274
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Calkins Creek/Astra Books for Young Readers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses.
An NBA star pays tribute to the influence of his grandfather.
In the same vein as his Long Shot (2009), illustrated by Frank Morrison, this latest from Paul prioritizes values and character: “My granddad Papa Chilly had dreams that came true,” he writes, “so maybe if I listen and watch him, / mine will too.” So it is that the wide-eyed Black child in the simply drawn illustrations rises early to get to the playground hoops before anyone else, watches his elder working hard and respecting others, hears him cheering along with the rest of the family from the stands during games, and recalls in a prose afterword that his grandfather wasn’t one to lecture but taught by example. Paul mentions in both the text and the backmatter that Papa Chilly was the first African American to own a service station in North Carolina (his presumed dream) but not that he was killed in a robbery, which has the effect of keeping the overall tone positive and the instructional content one-dimensional. Figures in the pictures are mostly dark-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 10, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-81003-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
A unique angle on a watershed moment in the civil rights era.
The New Orleans school child who famously broke the color line in 1960 while surrounded by federal marshals describes the early days of her experience from a 6-year-old’s perspective.
Bridges told her tale to younger children in 2009’s Ruby Bridges Goes to School, but here the sensibility is more personal, and the sometimes-shocking historical photos have been replaced by uplifting painted scenes. “I didn’t find out what being ‘the first’ really meant until the day I arrived at this new school,” she writes. Unfrightened by the crowd of “screaming white people” that greets her at the school’s door (she thinks it’s like Mardi Gras) but surprised to find herself the only child in her classroom, and even the entire building, she gradually realizes the significance of her act as (in Smith’s illustration) she compares a small personal photo to the all-White class photos posted on a bulletin board and sees the difference. As she reflects on her new understanding, symbolic scenes first depict other dark-skinned children marching into classes in her wake to friendly greetings from lighter-skinned classmates (“School is just school,” she sensibly concludes, “and kids are just kids”) and finally an image of the bright-eyed icon posed next to a soaring bridge of reconciliation. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A unique angle on a watershed moment in the civil rights era. (author and illustrator notes, glossary) (Autobiographical picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-338-75388-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Orchard/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022
PERSPECTIVES
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