You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?!

You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?!
By Jonah Winter & Andre Carrilho
Schwartz & Wade Books, 2009

Genre: Sports Non-fiction, Picture Book, Biography

Honors:

• ALA Notable Children's Books 2010
• Book Links 10/01/09
• Book Links starred 03/01/09
• Booklist starred 12/15/08
• Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books 02/01/09
• Horn Book 03/01/09
• Kirkus Reviews 01/15/09
• Multicultural Review 06/01/09
• Publishers Weekly starred 01/05/09
• School Library Journal starred 02/01/09
• Wilson's Children 10/01/10

Review: "What was THAT?" is the question that many batters ask after coming up against the power of Sandy Koufax's pitching. Born to a Jewish family, Koufax surprises everyone from his hometown when he decides to go into professional baseball, and he faces a lot of prejudice based on his ethnic heritage. But Koufax proves himself to be the LA Dodgers' greatest asset for six years of baseball history, according to Winter and Carrilho, risking his pride and the health of his elbow while giving it his all. The story of the rise of star Dodgers pitcher Sandy Koufax is presented in lively cartoon sketches, with statistical charts comparing his feats with the top pitchers of all time.

Opinion: The young protagonist in The Aurora County All-Stars, House Jackson, is an avid fan of Koufax--so much so, that he jeopardizes his own elbow trying to save his team from another loss in their yearly baseball game. The author spoke so highly of Koufax, that when I found this book I really wanted to know: Who the heck was Sandy Koufax??? I am not surprised that this book listed online as recommended for K-to-third-grade, and yet I think it is just as appropriate for younger tweens looking for an engaging look into the life of a famous baseball player. One of the greatest assets this book offers is in the back: there is a very useful glossary of baseball terms, plus a list of websites where baseball statistics can be found. For older children and teens doing baseball research, this book provides a really good starting point.

Ideas: This book is definitely going into a "Greatest Ball Players" display some day.