Dad, Jackie, and Me by Myron Uhlberg and Colin Bootman, ill. Atlanta, GA:  Peachtree Publishers, 2005.

ISBN 978-1-56145-329-0

 

Based on the author's own childhood, this story shares the historical rookie year of Jackie Robinson and a young boy's visits to the ballpark with his deaf father.  He watches Jackie overcome discrimination and develops a new respect for his Dad.

2008 California Young Reader Medal Nominee, Picture Book for Older Reader category

Watercolor illustrations.

Themes:  Jackie Robinson, Disabilities, Discrimination, Baseball

Curriculum Connection:  Segregation/Discrimination in US History

 

5Q/4P

 

ggolden 6/25/09

 

 

Dad, Jackie, and me, by Myron Uhlberg and Colin Bootman, ill. Georgia: Peachtree Publishers, 2005.

ISBN: 978-1561453290

Annotation: A young boy growing up in 1947 New York sees the effects of discrimination first-hand as he and his hearing-impaired father watch Jackie Robinson’s first season with the Dodgers unfold.

Curricular Use: 5^th-6^th grade; U.S. History

Illustrations: watercolor

4Q/4P

DM 6/20/09

 

Uhlberg, M. (2005). Dad, Jackie and me. Bootman, C. Ills. Atlanta, GA: Peachtree. ISBN: 1-56145-329-3

 

 

 

Annotation – Even though his father is deaf, a young boy enjoys going to the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball games with him just to see Jackie Robinson.

 

 

 

Media – watercolor on Arches Aquarelle 100% rag paper. Scrapbook end pages were from the Margot Hayward private collection.

 

 

 

Rating – Quality of Text - 2 -- Quality of Illustration 4 -- Popularity - 2 (1= low and 5 = high)

 

Comments - Even though this book is a work of fiction, middle school students may be interested in how to work with people who have hearing loss. This book may be a segue into a unit on understanding people's abilities and dis-abilities. Teaching students the ASL alphabet could be a supporting feature of the book.

Nancy

 

Uhlberg, Myron (2005). Dad, Jackie, and Me. Atlanta, GA: Peachtree. Illustrated by Colin Bootman, ISBN: 1-56145-329-3. 

 

In 1947, Jackie Robinson was playing baseball and the first black player for the Brooklyn Dodgers.  That summer, Father and son go to Ebbets Field to watch the game and root for Jackie.  Based on the authors experience growing up, the Father in the book is deaf (just like his real father) and the reader can sense the prejudice against the disabled and race.   

 

The endpapers of this book are a collection of old newspaper articles about Jackie Robinson and baseball.  The illustrations are large watercolors covering both sides of the page with text below the picture. They are of soft hues and simplistic; reminiscence of the simpler times.

 

 

Rating:  4Q/3P 

 

MWood