1 The Value of Courage - The Story of Jackie Robinson

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Spaghetti Book Club - Book Reviews by Kids for Kids

The Value of Courage - The Story of Jackie Robinson

Written by Spencer Johnson, M.D.


Reviewed by Michael I. (age 9) & Jett B. (age 9)


The Value of Courage - The Story of Jackie Robinson

Have you ever experienced bias in your life? Jackie Robinson sure did. Jackie Robinson did not understand why black people could not play in any major league sports. Baseball was his favorite game. He played it every chance he got. Jackie's mother gave him a great gift. It was... a rag ball in the shape of a baseball. Jackie played with it every day until it broke. (In Jackie's imagination wasnt broken. It began to talk to him). He put it back together and took it everywhere he went in life as he grew up.

Jackie played many sports in college and professionsl football, but soon had to stop to join the army for World War II. People still treated Jackie very badly, even during the war. "Hey black man. Get to the back of the bus where you belong." Later on, Jackie finallly was allowed to play on the Brooklyn Dodgers. The fans yelled bad things to Jackie, but he had one true teammate. His name was Peewee Reese. Pee Wee stood up for Jackie. Soon, lots of black people started playing in major league sports. Jackie won lots of awards such as: MVP and Rookie of the Year. When Jackie retired, he became a spokesman for black rights. Several years after Jackie stopped playing baseball, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Read this book to find out all the hard times Jackie had to face in order to become equal.

We think this book is totally awesome because Jackie Robinson was the first black person to play professional baseball and this is the story of his life. "Jackie, Here is your cousin," the other team said as they through a black cat onto the baseball diamond. We thought that was really mean of the other team. We thought it was sad when Jackie's rag ball broke. This book is all about prejudice, tolerance, and acceptance.

We recommend this book to people who enjoy reading sports books. We also recommend this book to people who believe they can change things that are wrong and don't want to stop fighting for what they believe is right. This book is for second grade and up because everyone should learn about the value of courage. This book teaches you not to be prejudice against other people simply because of the color of their skin.

Michael I. and Jett B.
are students in
Class C122