From the Book Basket
A series of fine books for children and young adults
came into my Book Basket this week and I want to pass on some information about
them. Yesterday (February 14, 2012), I
posted comments about Ichiro, a new graphic novel. Last night I read, Just as Good: How Larry Doby Changed America’s Game
by Chris Crowe (Candelwick 2012, Ages 8 & Up) and What Color is My World? The Lost
History of African-American Inventors by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
(Candlewick 2012, Ages 8 & Up).
In our home Center Fielder Larry Doby was just as
revered as Second Basemen Jackie Robinson.
Like ours, the family in the story was baseball crazy. We used to live two blocks from Griffith
Stadium in Washington, DC and would peep through the holes in the fence to
watch the likes of Doby crack that bat. In
his book Crowe pays tribute to Doby’s legacy, the effect he had on his fans and
his efforts as a champion for Civil Rights.
Mike Benny’s illustrations are energetic and rendered in such a way that
you can almost hear the crack of the bat as Doby makes the first home run of
the 1948 World Series against the Boston Red Sox. After a stellar performance
with the Cleveland Indians, in 1978 Doby went on to become the manager of the
Chicago White Sox. The book ends
capturing an historical moment with a black man Doby and white man pitcher Steve
Gromek celebrating the victory by smiling and hugging one another, something
unheard of and that was met with some of the same kind of vitriol that exist
around race today.
In What Color is My World? Kareem
Abdul-Jabbar and his co-author Raymond Obstfeld weave an exciting narrative
around biographical information and blueprints related to the inventions of a
series of groundbreaking scientists and inventors including Dr. Valerie L.
Thomas. Thomas invented the Illusion
Transmitter and worked her way up to Associate Chief of Space Science Data
Operations Office at NASA. Primarily
narrated by middle school twins Ella and Herbie, the stories cleverly unfold
around a dimension of African American history that goes well beyond
enslavement, entertainment and sports.
The illustrations by Ben Boos and A.G. Ford capture
the range of the physical realities of black people, presenting us in multiple
racial characteristics. With facts about
each inventor or scientists, realistic renderings of their inventions and
blueprints, the interesting design of the book is bound to engage readers who
might otherwise bypass the book. The
biographical information also focuses on Alfred L. Cralle, inventor of the
Ice-Cream Scoop; Lonnie Johnson, creator of the Super Soaker and Dr. Mark Dean,
Vice President at IBM and Personal Computer Pioneer. Historical information related to the
biographies is set in context with the inclusion of sidebars like the one noted
below:
I wonder how many other medical miracles might
have happened a lot sooner if some nutty people hadn’t worked so hard to keep
black people from becoming doctors.
Both books are exciting tools for getting our young
people to learn the relationship between modern innovations and technology,
while wrapping their minds around dimensions of African American/American
History that are still relegated all too often to obscurity.
Daphne
Muse spent six years as a writer for Breaking Barriers, a curriculum project
that is a partnership between the Office of Education for the Commission on
Major League Baseball and Scholastic, Inc. Raised on the roar of the crowd from
Griffith Stadium the social history of the sport continues to intrigue her.
