We are the Ship:  The Story of Negro League Baseball by Kadir Nelson.  New York: Jump at the Sun, 2009.

ISBN:  978-078680832.                Subject/Genre: Baseball, African American History, Picture Books        Grades

Nelson's oil paintings are nothing short of stunning in this retelling of the history of the Negro National Baseball League, from conception until it folded in 1948 told in innings.

Q/P:  5/5 This book won many awards for children's literature but the material is also presented very casually, from an insider point of view, using "we".

bvg, 7.21.09

We are the ship:  the story of Negro League Baseball by Kadir Nelson.  New York:  Jump at the Sun, Hyperion, 2008.

ISBN 13: 978078680328

ISBN 10:  0786808322

Illustrator:  Kadir Nelson

Media:  Oil paintings

5Q/4P

Curricular connection:  Black History Month. Teaching parallels can be made between Black History Month and the plight of African American history from slavery to freedom.  Reading material that can be used includes: Story Painter: The Life of Jacob Lawrence, Hank Aaron: Brave in Every Way, We are the Ship:  The Story of Negro League Baseball, and Harriet and the Promised Land.

Reading level: 7^th to 8^th grade

Annotation:  Kadir Nelson’s illustration and text for We Are the Ship:  The Story of Negro League Baseball brings to life the period of the 1920s to the 1940s with authentic accurate details.  The story is told in first-person narrative from the perspective of the “Everyman” player, creating a tone of factual credibility.

KRF 6/29/09