Knuckleball Ned - Hardcover

Dickey, R.A.; Karounos, Michael

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0803740387 ISBN 13: 9780803740389

Publisher: Dial Books, 2014

Synopsis

Cy Young award winner R.A. Dickey creates a funny anti-bullying picture book with an adorable baseball character that kids will love
    
Ned the baseball is very nervous on his first day of school. Everyone else seems to know where they belong, but not Ned. He isn't a fastball or a slider, and the Foul Ball gang makes fun of him for the way he wobbles. When they do something particularly dastardly to another student, it's up to Ned to come to the rescue with his unique abilities. Not only does Ned realize he's a knuckleball, but he discovers that he can be a hero, too!

About this title

About the Author

R. A. Dickey is a starting pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays. In 2012, he became the first knuckleball pitcher to win the Cy Young Award. When not on the road,he lives in Tennessee with his wife and children. R. A. is also the author of the bestselling memoir Wherever I Wind Up and its adaptation for young readers, Throwing Strikes.

Tim Bowers is the illustrator of over thirty children’s books. He lives in central Ohio.

Reviews

PreS-Gr 1—Cy Young Award winner Dickey is a starting pitcher for the Toronto Bluejays and the only pitcher to use the knuckleball (a ball with minimum spin that causes an unpredictable motion) as his primary pitch. In his picture-book debut, Dickey has Ned, an anthropomorphized baseball, nervously pondering his first day as school—as it turns out, with good reason. Wobbly from birth, he bumps into everyone as he makes his way down the school bus's aisle and angers the Foul Ball Gang when he comes to the defense of his large friend, Sammy the Softball. To make matters worse, all the other balls—fast balls, curve balls, sliders, etc.—know who they are, and Ned does not. Eventually, Ned's wobbling saves the day when the Foul Ball Gang plays a nasty prank on Connie Curveball, and he comes to the realization that he is not a knucklehead but, rather, Knuckleball Ned. The clear, lively writing and nice pacing make this a good addition to the canon of antibullying books that make their point without being message driven. Bowers adds to the fun by individualizing the many balls, no mean trick when the head shapes must be identical. His cartoon acrylic paint illustrations effectively capture Ned's wobbliness and make the pages come alive with motion.—Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ

Edition details

• Publisher: Dial Books
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0803740387
• ISBN 13: 9780803740389
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Bowers Tim
• Number of pages: 32