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LOR |
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson
(age 9-12) by Bette Bao Lord friendship ... humor ... identity ... sports ... school Shirley Temple Wong sails from China to America with a heart full of dreams. Her new home is Brooklyn, New York. America is indeed a land full of wonders, but Shirley doesn't know any English, so it's hard to make friends. Then a miracle happens...baseball. It is 1947, and Jackie Robinson, star of the Brooklyn Dodgers, is everyone's hero. Jackie Robinson is proving that a black man, the grandson of a slave, can make a difference in America and for Shirley as well, on the ball field and off, America becomes the land of opportunity. |
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SLO |
Hang Tough, Paul Mather
(age 9-12) by Alfred Slote identity ... illness/loss ... sports Paul Mather's a pitcher ... a really good one. His off speed pitch is enough to bowl a kid backward, and his fast ball is pure smoke. There isn't anything he can't throw, from sliders, change-ups, and sinkers to a mean curve ball that breaks at just the right moment. He's pitched no-hitters and perfect games. To Paul, pitching is what you live for and why you live. Lately, though, Paul hasn't been allowed to do much of anything, much less play ball. He's got leukemia, and it's put him into the hospital several times already. His parents are so worried, they've forbidden him to play the game he loves so much. They're afraid that if Paul strains himself his illness may come back a final time...and maybe even take his life. But Paul is a winner. His team needs him, and he won't give up without a fight. Paul Mather is determined to pitch every inning...to keep playing baseball, and to keep hanging tough, no matter what the odds. |
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BAU |
Sticks
(age 9-12) by Joan Bauer friendship ... sports ... enterprise Publisher comments: Mickey's family owns the neighborhood pool hall, and he's been playing since before he could talk. Now that he's in fifth grade, he's determined to win the Junior Nine-Ball Championship and cream obnoxious Buck Pender. Problem is, Mickey's ten and Buck's thirteen-and could eat him for a snack. Even with his friend Arlen's help, Mickey doesn't stand a chance. Then Joe Alvarez shows up at the pool hall. He's a fantastic player, and decides to sign on as Mickey's pool coach. But it all depends on one person: Mickey. Can he beat the odds? |
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WAL |
Winning Season Series (age 9-12) by Rich Wallace friendship ... sports In the first of this series, The Roar of the Crowd, Manny's made the football team and determined to get into the game. The problem is Manny is not that big. He's got a whole season to prove to his team and himself that he can earn the roar of the crowd. title: Takedown title: Second-String Center |
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CHR |
Mystery Coach
(age 9-12) by Matt Christopher mystery ... sports When their coach becomes ill and their baseball team starts falling apart, several of the Blazers begin receiving coaching tips from an anonymous phone caller. |
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CHR |
Front Court Hex
(age 9-12) by Matt Christopher magic ... sports Star of the previous year's basketball team, Jerry can't do anything right in the new season, but refuses to believe his new friend who, claiming to be a warlock, predicts Jerry's play won't improve until he changes his slovenly habits. |
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TOL |
The Great Pete Penney
(age 9-12) by Jean Bashor Tolle sports An 11-year-old pitcher's unusual friendship with a tiny invisible man is responsible for her team's very memorable season. |
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SLO |
The Trading Game
(age 9-12) by Alfred Slote family ... enterprise ... sports Andy loves to collect baseball cards, but most of all, he loves his grandfather, an ex-Major League baseball player who thinks that baseball card collecting is a useless hobby. When Andy must choose to either play by his grandfather's rules or do whatever it takes to trade for his grandfather's baseball card, he learns a valuable lesson on hero worship. |
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NAM |
Yang the Youngest and His Terrible Ear
(age 9-12) by Lensey Namioka family ... friendship ... sports ... the arts Recently arrived in Seattle from China, musically untalented Yingtao is faced with giving a violin performance to attract new students for his father when he would rather be working on friendships and playing baseball. |
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AVI |
S.O.R. Losers
(age 9-12) by Avi humor ... sports The South Orange River (S.O.R.) School is big on sports and famous for not losing a game all season. That all changes when the school insists that some seventh-grader non-jocks form a soccer team. The new team is sure that losing their first game 32-0 will put an end to their athletic adventure, but no such luck. Their parents insist they try harder. The whole school cheers them on, and the finally score...for the other team. And only the eleven members of the S.O.R. Losers team know the secret of their outstanding "success." |
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SLO |
Finding Buck McHenry
(age 9-12) by Alfred Slote identity ... historical ... sports Eleven-year-old Jason, believing the school custodian Mack Henry to be Buck McHenry, a famous pitcher from the old Negro League, tries to enlist him as a coach for his Little League team by revealing his identity to the world. |
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ROW |
Quidditch Through the Ages
(age 9-12) by J. K. Rowling fantasy ... sports ... magic The definitive guide to Quidditch, for all Harry Potter fans. |
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RIT |
The Boy Who Saved Baseball
(age 9-12) by John Ritter enterprise ... humor ... sports Tom Gallagher finds himself in a tight spot. The fate of Dillontown rests on the outcome of one baseball game, winner take all. Maybe Tom has one hope: Cruz de la Cruz, the mysterious boy who has just ridden into town on horseback claiming to know the secret of hitting. |
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GIF |
All the Way Home
(age 9-12) by Patricia Reilly Giff identity ... historical ... sports ... friendship ... family Brick Tiernan is devastated when fire destroys his family's apple orchard in Windy Hill, New York, in the summer of 1941. His parents are forced to take jobs in different cities, and Brick is sent to Brooklyn to live with Loretta, a family friend, until the family recovers front their financial loss. Brick feels homesick before he even gets to Brooklyn, but when he meets Martel, Loretta's adopted daughter, he discovers that they have things in common. Both are Dodgers fans, and Martel, who wonders about her real mother, has a mysterious connection to Windy Hill. In the final days of summer, Brick and Martel find a way to return to Windy Hill, where a kind elderly couple help them discover what they are each searching for-a sense of belonging and the real meaning of home. |
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KOR |
The Zucchini Warriors
(age 9-12) by Gordon Korman humor ... school ... sports Roommates Bruno and Boots find obstacles in their way as they attempt to lead the Macdonald Hall Zucchini Warriors to a victorious football season and earn the reward of a new recreation center. |
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GUT |
Dan Gutman's Baseball Card Adventures (age 9-12) by Dan Gutman historical ... sports With the help of baseball cards and other memorabilia, Joey is able to travel through time to meet some of the greatest sports stars in history. title: Abner & Me: a Baseball Card Adventure title: Babe & Me: a Baseball Card Adventure title: Honus & Me: a Baseball Card Adventure title: Jackie & Me: a Baseball Card Adventure title: Mickey & Me: a Baseball Card Adventure title: Shoeless Joe & Me: a Baseball Card Adventure title: Jim and Me: a Baseball Card Adventure title: Ray and Me: a Baseball Card Adventure title: Roberto and Me |