Michael's Golden Rules

I enjoyed this book. It's about 2 boys in their youth playing baseball. I enjoyed more reading the "Golden Rules"! They could be applied to life in general: 1. Know the game; 2. Pay attention to the coach at all times; 3. Know your opponent; 4. Be a team player; 5. Practice a winning attitude; 6. Find out what you do best; 7. Find out what you need to work on; 8. Practice, practice, practice; 9. Learn from your mistakes; and, 10. Have Fun!

These are rules that can be used just about anywhere in life so it proves that sports is a great way to get kids ready for life. I would like to give this book to members of my corporate sales team. The illustrations are superior and I didn't know it was Michael Jordan mother who wrote it. Who cares if she's a celebrity? I gave it to every member of my four year old tee ball team two years ago and I still get comments from parents about how it's their youngsters favorite book. The "but" in my review that keeps it from getting five stars is the misprint in the last few paragraphs of the book. Beginning with the third to last paragraph: "Now, that's what I call a home run," said Michael as he smiled at Jonathan. "You got it," said Jonathan. "And when next year comes around, we'll be ready." "You said it," said Jonathan as he raised his hand for a high five. I do believe the last graph should have read, "You said it," said MICHAEL as he raised his hand for a high five. You would think coming from one of the largest book companies in the world, someone would have caught that. If it has been corrected in later versions, I would like to return my copy for a new one from Simon and Shuster. Hackneyed? I believe most children's books probably fall into this category. Every boy I've seen read this book--every child, come to think of it--has been held rapt by the illustrations alone.

My 5 year old loves baseball. So this book was the perfect book for him. The illustrations were great, and the story was great. The golden rules are wonderful, and are a great starting poing in applying them outside of baseball. He reads this book frequently. Highly recommended.