Playoff Dreams

I am six years old and just started playing baseball this year. It was great to read a book about a boy who loved baseball so much even if his team wasn't winning. The end was very good and very exciting.

Our family loves Fred Bowen's books because each story includes a little real sports history. The history in Playoff Dreams is about Ernie Banks of the Chicago Cubs. He was a fantastic player with a fantastic attitude. He never got down on the game even though his team never made it to the World Series. The main character in Playoff Dreams is a centerfielder named Brendan. He is a really good player but he's bummed because his teammates stink. He goes to a game at Wrigley Field (home of the Chicago Cubs). The whole scene at Wrigley Field is very interesting and readers will be surprised at what Brendan does (reluctantly) because of a long-standing real-life tradition with Cubs fans. (It's really neat the way the author pulls in real history.) Brendan learns about the legend of Ernie Banks at Wrigley Field and the lesson about optimism takes root slowly in Brendan. Parents will love the moral of the story and kids will love all the sports action (there's lots of it.)