Little Baseball

by Brad Herzog, Doug Bowles (Illustrator)

Overview

Now even the smallest of fans can enjoy a book about their favorite sport. Rhyming riddles accompanied by colorful artwork help introduce the game's simplest, most basic elements.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781585365470
Publisher:	Sleeping Bear Press
Publication date:	02/17/2011
Series:	Little Sports
Pages:	20
Sales rank:	165,523
Product dimensions:	6.90(w) x 4.90(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	Up to 3 Years

Editorial Reviews

Rhyming riddles introduce components of baseball in this kickoff to the Little Sports series ("Shaped like a house,/ but this one's flat./ You stand next to it/ when you bat"). Each answer is clearly printed with a picture on the back of each page. Bowles's illustrations are more soothing than action-packed: most are closeups on the answers to each riddle, joined by images of young players at bat, pitching, and awaiting their turn on the bench. If a little clunky in their meter, Herzog's rhymes should make this an entertaining guessing game for aspiring Little Leaguers. Also available: Little Football. All ages. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

The thing about sports is that proud parents (truth be told, fathers more than mothers) cannot wait to share their sports hopes and dreams with their little, little ones—who truth be told—could care less. Still this board book of riddles can keep the eager hopes alive with solving the fun rhyming riddles that get posed on one spread and answered on the next. The enthusiasm with which the adult reads is a very important factor in setting children's positive disposition to literacy. At the same time, the Bowles' illustrations pick up on the images a young child might glimpse as his or her parent avidly watches a game—from the bat to the ball to a scoreboard and the food treat of a hot dog that helps compensate many a sports fan for the inevitable disappointments he/she will endure. In the end, this is probably more engagingfor the sports enthusiast parent than for the board book crowd. Nonetheless, it is likely to set a positive disposition towards books and reading. Reviewer: Mary Hynes-Berry

Children's Literature - Mary Hynes-Berry

It's puzzling to see riddling stumpers about America's favorite (arguably) pastime pitched in a format associated with the youngest listeners.

Trite riddles plod through baseball's equipment and players with a canned enthusiasm presented in each of 10 uninspired rhymes. Answers include the obvious (baseball, baseball glove) and even stretch to encompass concession-stand fare (hot dog). Any potential fun loses its oomph when the moral message strikes out: "When you play the game / and wait your turn / you sit on this / to watch and learn." Simple backgrounds reveal part of the item in question and support the large, centered faux-handwritten type. Who is this book's audience? Toddlers will gravitate to the sturdy pages but are unlikely to shout out the responses requested (including yelling "umpire" to describe the "man in blue"). Independent readers will struggle to stay with this condescending selection, no matter what the text otherwise suggests. "Yea, yea, yea!" yells the crowd. / You've read this little book out loud. / Now grab your bat and a ball; / baseball is a thrill for all!"

Definitely no home run here. (Board book. 2-4)

Kirkus Reviews