Project Description

Middle Readers

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Excerpt

Stumptown Kid

by Carol Gorman  & Ron J. Findley

Twelve-year-old Charlie Nebraska wants two things he can’t get: to make the local baseball team and to have life to return to the way it was before his father died two years earlier in the Korean War.

When Charlie meets Luther Peale, a stranger who quietly and mysteriously arrives in Charlie’s small Iowa town, and sets up camp near the river, the two strike up a friendship. Luther is a former Negro Baseball League player, and he agrees to coach Charlie’s fledgling neighborhood baseball team.

But many of the town’s white residents are suspicious of Luther because of his skin color. And when Charlie inadvertently reveals a secret of Luther’s, violence erupts in the town and both Luther and Charlie are drawn into serious danger.

Authors Carol Gorman and Ron J. Findley have created two highly memorable, emotionally complex characters in this dramatic story set in the days of the Negro Leagues that illustrates the meanings of friendship, prejudice, and heroism.

Format: Paperback
Price: $9.95
ISBN: 978-1-56145-412-9
Publication Date: 4/30/2007
Page Count: 272
Size: 6 ̎ x 8-1/2 ̎
Age Range: 8 – 12
Language: English
Format: eBook
ISBN: 978-1-56145-719-9
Age Range: 8 – 12
Language: English

Purchase this eBook through the following vendors:

OpenRoad
Booksource
Follett
Mackin

AR Level: 3.7
F&P: W, Gr 6, Genre HF
Lexile: 620L
Themes: Baseball, Community, Friendship, Racism
BISAC 1: JUV039120: Juvenile Fiction / Issues / Prejudice & Racism
BISAC 2: JUV032010: Juvenile Fiction / Baseball & Softball
BISAC 3: JUV005000: Juvenile Fiction / Boys & Men

Reviews

“Themes of honesty, loyalty, and heroism are imbedded in this powerful, fast-paced story… Readers will enjoy this winning mix of sports, suspense, and heroism, and delight in the baseball wit and wisdom.” ―School Library Journal

“Authors Gorman and Findley do an excellent job of bringing to life the main characters in this tension-filled story, where relationships are strained and heroism is revealed in the most surprising ways.” ―Good News Toronto

“[Gorman and Findley’s] poignant story gently teaches, but never preaches, lessons on friendship and acceptance. Young readers will discover how prejudice can destroy individuals and communities while honesty and heroism create true strength and enduring bonds.” ―The Des-Moines Register

Awards

Paterson Prize for Books for Young People (Grades 7-12) ―The Poetry Center at Passiac County Community College), 2006

Kansas State Reading Circle Recommended Reading List (Middle School / Junior High) ―Kansas National Education Association, 2005

Young Adult Top Forty ―Pennsylvania School Librarians Association, 2005-2006

Outstanding Book Award (Honorable Mention) ―The Gustavus Myers Center for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights, 2005

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Emphasis on Reading Program (Nominee, Grades 4-6) ―Alabama Department of Education, 2006-2007

Great Stone Face Book Award (Nominee) ―Children’s Librarians of New Hampshire, 2006-2007

Iowa Teen Award (Nominee) ―Iowa Educational Media Association, 2007-2008

KSRA Young Adult Book Award (Nominee) ―Keystone State Reading Association, 2006-2007

Louisiana Young Readers’ Choice Award (Nominee, Grades 6-8) ―State Library of Louisiana and Louisiana Center for the Book, 2008

Nutmeg Children’s Book Award (Nominee) ―Connecticut Library Association and Connecticut Educational Media Association, 2009-2010

Sasquatch Award (Nominee) ―Washington Library Media Association, 2008

South Carolina Children’s Book Award (Nominee) ―South Carolina Association of School Librarians, 2007-2008

Sunshine State Young Reader’s Award (Nominee, Grades 3-5) ―FAME, 2008-2009

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Meet the Author

Carol Gorman is the author of more than a dozen award-winning books for kids, including The Marvelous Makeover Of Lizard Flanagan, Dork In Disguise, Dork On The Run; and A Midsummer Night’s Dork. She coauthored Stumptown Kid with Ron J. Findley. She is a former middle school teacher and holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa. Gorman lives in Iowa. You can visit her website here.

Meet the Author

Ron J. Findley was involved in baseball from the time he was a boy growing up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. As a child he was always looking for a sandlot baseball game, and many of the ideas for Stumptown Kid are based on his memories of that time. He coached youth football, baseball, and softball teams for many years. He passed away in 2010.