A review by eirenophile
Catching the Moon: The Story of a Young Girl's Baseball Dream by Crystal Hubbard

4.0

I only got the book out of the library because of my commitment to finding stories about historical women (especially women of color), but I'll be honest, the long title and the topic got me thinking it would be dry. When I flipped through it before checking it out, and saw the number of words per page and the smallish font, I resigned myself to it. I mean, regardless, how could I pass up the story of the first woman to play in the professional men's baseball leagues? (She replaced Hank Aaron when he left the Negro Leagues to play for the Major Leagues.) And, of course, that it's the story of a YOUNG woman of color makes it even better. And, of course, that it's doing something with contemporary relevance (as opposed to, say, the right to vote, the end of slavery, etc) makes it a nice addition to other books about Harriet Tubman and Sacagewea and Buffalo Calf Road Woman and others. (Another list I want to make!)

But no! When I actually read it, the story was GREAT! It totally drew me in and I think it would be just as engaging read aloud on a tape or something. (I do think that this is too long to be a read-aloud book, unless it were spread out over a few nights.) But that does not mean that the drawings were bad, not at all. Although it didn't strike me as really visually unique, it was definitely beautiful, and the main character really shines.

Another one for the "to-own" shelf!