Baseball Crazy: Ten Short Stories that Cover All the Bases

There's no shortage of great writing in this collection of 10 stories. Baseball unifies the entries, but there the similarities end. From Jerry Spinelli's offbeat story about a “wiseacre wet-the-bed stinky-footed ” orphan experiencing his first-ever major league game to Frank Portman's amusing two-and-a-half second journey inside the mind of ill-fated fielder Mark Pang, these entries present an impressive array of voices and styles, not to mention memorable young characters. John H. Ritter introduces Frankie Alvarez, a larger-than-life pitcher who saves his team's championship victory, a sharp contrast to Paul Acampora's Jeffrey, who earns his mother's disgust when he fails to strike out a crucial batter; meanwhile, Sue Corbett's Kirby, neither the worst nor the best, learns from the only girl on the team: “Don't think. Just react.” Whether “baseball born and baseball raised” or tepid fans of America's pastime, readers will be drawn in by the masterful storytelling. Ages 8-up. (Mar.)