Satchel Paige Striking Out by Jim Crow James Sturm and Rich Tommaso Date of Publication: 2007 ISBN: 978-07863901-8 Number of pages: 89

REQUIRED READING ABILITY: Junior, Intermediate: Average
GENRES: Historical Fiction
THEMES: Good versus Evil, Prejudice

SUMMARY: This book features not only the story of Satchel Paige, but includes a realistic picture of the times in which he lived, and what he meant to the people of his generation. In this graphic novel, we read about the life of fictional Emmet Wilson, a black share-cropper farmer whose moment of glory as a player in the Negro Leagues came when he scored a run off the great pitcher Satchel Paige. Shortly after that, an injury ends Wilson's career and forces him to return to the life of a share-cropper. The authors focus on Wilson's life in the racist South of the 1940s. He also demonstrates how his brief encounter with the legendary Paige provided lifelong inspiration.

WHO WOULD LOVE THIS BOOK? A kid who...
- enjoys baseball
- enjoys American history
- likes biographies
- is interested in Civil Rights
-enjoys reading about underdogs
-enjoys historical fiction

WHAT ELSE? This book is told in an interesting manner. Rather than a straight biography, the authors tell the story of a poor man in the prejudiced Southern United States by interweaving the events of Satchel Paige's life with his. This book uses graphic images simply and effectively to tell an important story. It seems historically accurate, reflecting the difficult life of Negro League Baseball players in the early 1900's. The authors use baseball to make the story more interesting.

Teacher resource available at http://cartoonstudies.org/books/paige/