Tom Gallagher finds himself in a tight spot. The fate of Dillontown rests on the outcome of one baseball game, winner take all. And it's all because Tom had to open his big mouth. If only he could get Dante Del Gato-the greatest hitter to ever play the game-to coach the team. But crazy ol' Del Gato hasn't spoken to folks in years, not after walking away from the game in disgrace just before his team played in its first World Series. Maybe Tom has one more hope: Cruz de la Cruz, the mysteri...

Happy 100th Birthday, Fenway Park!"Stats" Pagano may have been born with a heart defect, but he lives for three things: his family's hot dog stand right outside fabled Fenway Park, his beloved Red Sox, and any baseball statistic imaginable. When the family can no longer make ends meet with the hot dog stand, life becomes worrisome for Stats. Then the Sox go on a long losing streak and the team's ace pitcher--and Stats's idol--becomes convinced the famed Curse of th...

The exciting prequel to the bestselling The Boy Who Saved BaseballThe fate of a Wild West gold-mining town rests in the hands of two individuals. One is a twelve-year-old boy with a love and instinct for baseball unmatched by any grown-up. The other is the country's most infamous outlaw, on the run and looking for peace of mind. Together, they pair up to prove that heroes can emerge from anywhere. John H. Ritter brings the Old West to life in this prequel to his breakout s...

In this ALA Jr. Literary Guild selection by John H. Ritter, a rough-and-tumble band of batsmen from a California boomtown insist they're the country's best baseball team. To back up their boast, they make a wager with the 1881 champion Chicago White Stockings. Into this high-stakes climate rides 12-year-old baseball virtuoso Jack Dillon with his newfound friend, Billy the Kid. This sets the stage for a fun-filled, rip-roaring baseball shootout. "The Desperado Who Stole Baseball has it all-...

In his 3rd book on baseball, John Ritter takes the reader to Dillontown where, through a series of events, the fate of the town rests on the outcome of a baseball game. Tom and a newcomer, Cruz, convince a former Major-League Baseball player to coach the team. The team prepares for the big day by using unorthodox training methods. While the team wins the game, it still takes an unusual set of circumstances to save the town.

An ALA Best Book for Young Adults1999 IRA Children's Book AwardA BCCB Blue Ribbon BookWhen preacher's boy Luke Bledsoe steps on a baseball field, he discovers he has real pitching talent. For once, he can be proud of being left-handed. But Reverend Bledsoe believes that the left side is the side of Satan and the baseball field is the Devil's playground. Luke has spent his whole life trying to please his father. Will...

Thirteen-year-old Tyler loves spending the summer in New York with his cousin. Each day, they play baseball in a Central Park league. Tyler is a sharp hitter, so he hopes to become an All-Star. But he has a temper that is quicker than his swing. If he can't control it, he will lose his place on the team. There's trouble off the diamond, too. An awful accident has turned Tyler's dad into a distracted stranger. People tell Tyler that time will heal his father's wounds, but what about the hur...

As World War II rages across the world, Kannon’s life is torn apart at home. With baseball as his only outlet, he’s left to wonder whether his family will ever be reunited—and whether his world will ever be the same.Kannon has lived his whole life in Hawaii as part of a tight-knit Japanese community. He cherishes his family, his traditions, and most of all, baseball, which has always served as a bond between him and his father. But after Japan attacks Pearl Harbor,...

Widely praised for novels that celebrate the game of baseball while offering valuable life lessons, John H. Ritter has won such prestigious awards as the Paterson Prize for Children's Literature. Fenway Fever honors the 100th birthday of Fenway Park, the iconic home of the Boston Red Sox. Nothing makes ''Stats'' Pagano happier than his beloved Red Sox and his family's stadium-side hotdog stand. So when the team goes on a losing streak and the stand can no longer support itself, Stats comes...

This is the story of a magnificent wolf-dog, born in the wild, who struggles to survive in the harsh Yukon. White Fang is the lone survivor of his family and soon learns to follow the brutal law of the North— kill or be killed. Isolated and mistreated, White Fang becomes a mortal fighter, feared by all. Only through kindness and gentleness is this killer transformed into an animal capable of great love.

Children the world over have believed in the legend of Santa Claus forever—until told differently. Now, there is no reason to think otherwise! Robert Sullivan, a senior editor at Life magazine, has diligently compiled documentation to prove that Santa and flying reindeer are anything but myths and that Santa Claus does, in fact, make his trek around the globe each Christmas Eve. With the expertise of some of the world's most renowned Arctic experts, wildlife biologists, historians...

Tupperware ladies, eighties people, and leisure concept salesmen beware: Dave Barry is on the loose and no one is safe! In this collection of eighty essays, the inimitable columnist observes everything that makes America the unique, special place you've grown to love: taxes, toilets, airbags, baseball, beer commercials, and numerous other American artifacts.With his beloved brand of zany humor, Barry covers it all, from lauding the little-appreciated characteristics of yeast to the...