A review by bittbee
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson by Bette Bao Lord

5.0

I first got introduced to this book through a chapter in my 4th-grade reading book. The next time my mother took me to the book store, I found this one and read the entire thing the next day. What a delightful book. Plucky, baseball-obsessed Shirley remains one of my favorite characters from my childhood. Her pains, joys, triumphs, schemes, and worries all feel very real to a ten-year-old. Lord's writing style is delightful, her characters memorable, and her feel for the setting wonderful. Possibly my favorite part was how well she handled Shirley's balance between her heritage and new life--not surprising, since Lord went through the same thing!