Message-driven but centered on a well-chosen example.
A profile of a WNBA star who gave up her professional career to focus on a humanitarian cause.
Maya Moore was a bona fide star—a noisy kid with “awesome stats” even as a middle schooler, who led her high school team to a 125-3 record and went on to spectacular exploits in both the WNBA and the 2012 and 2016 Olympics. But Maraniss commends her particularly here for suddenly retiring in 2019 to campaign for the release of Jonathan Irons, a Black man who at age 18 was unjustly convicted by an all-white jury of burglary and assault and sentenced to 50 years in prison. The two were later married. The author ends there but goes on to provide discussion questions and to urge readers to think and learn more about racial injustice. “Anyone can make a difference,” he closes. “And everyone should try.” Along the way, he points out the sexism that Moore observed; NBA games get far more exposure than WNBA games—a disparity that frustrated her (“The ball of momentum is deflating before my eyes”). In stiff but sincere monochrome illustrations, Hodge tracks Moore from a child to a sturdy, confident adult; aside from one image of a white basketball coach with a clownish face, figures in the illustrations are expressive and dark-skinned.
Message-driven but centered on a well-chosen example. (career stats, glossary, resource list) (Biography. 8-10)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780593526187
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: April 20, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2024
It’s an often-told story, but the author is still in a position to give it a unique perspective.
The author of Promises to Keep: How Jackie Robinson Changed America (2004) tells her father’s tale again, for younger readers.
Though using a less personal tone this time and referring to herself in the third person, Robinson still devotes as much attention to his family life, youth and post-baseball career as she does to his achievements on the field. Writing in short sentences and simple language, she presents a clear picture of the era’s racial attitudes and the pressures he faced both in the military service and in baseball—offering plenty of clear reasons to regard him not just as a champion athlete, but as a hero too. An early remark about how he ran with “a bunch of black, Japanese, and Mexican boys” while growing up in Pasadena is insensitively phrased, and a sweeping claim that by 1949 “[t]he racial tension was broken” in baseball is simplistic. Nevertheless, by and large her account covers the bases adequately. The many photos include an admixture of family snapshots, and a closing Q-and-A allows the author to announce the imminent release of a new feature film about Robinson.
It’s an often-told story, but the author is still in a position to give it a unique perspective. (Biography. 8-10)Pub Date: March 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-545-54006-3
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
A squeaky-clean biography of the original Mouseketeer.
Scollon begins with the (to say the least) arguable claim that Disney grew up to “define and shape what would come to be known as the American Century.” Following this, he retraces Disney’s life and career, characterizing him as a visionary whose only real setbacks came from excess ambition or at the hands of unscrupulous film distributors. Disney’s brother Roy appears repeatedly to switch between roles as encourager and lead doubter, but except in chapters covering his childhood, the rest of his family only puts in occasional cameos. Unsurprisingly, there is no mention of Disney’s post–World War II redbaiting, and his most controversial film, Song of the South, gets only a single reference (and that with a positive slant). More puzzling is the absence of Mary Poppins from the tally of Disney triumphs. Still, readers will come away with a good general picture of the filmmaking and animation techniques that Disney pioneered, as well as a highlight history of his studio, television work and amusement parks. Discussion questions are appended: “What do you think were Walt Disney’s greatest accomplishments and why?” Brown’s illustrations not seen. An iconic success story that has often been told before but rarely so one-dimensionally or with such firm adherence to the company line. (bibliography) (Biography. 8-10)
Pub Date: July 15, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4231-9647-1
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Disney Press
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2014
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