A Whole New Ball Game: The Story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League - Softcover

Macy, Sue

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1627790608 ISBN 13: 9781627790604

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. BYR Paperbacks, 1993

Synopsis

"Play ball!" yelled the umpires as the teams of the AAGPBL took the field in the tense, war-torn days of 1943. Like all professional baseball players, these athletes scrambled to their positions, tossed balls across diamonds, and filled the air with chatter. But there was something different about them--they all wore skirts, went to charm school, and continually had to answer one question: "What is a woman doing playing baseball?"

What were they doing? Having a great time, playing top-notch ball, and showing that a woman's place was at home only when she was at bat, behind the plate, or scoring a run. For twelve seasons, from 1943 to 1954, some of America's best female athletes earned their livings by playing baseball. This is their story in their own words, a tale of no-hitters and chaperones, stolen bases and practical jokes, home runs and run-ins with fans.

Life in the league, however, was not all fun. Born out of a wartime "manpower" shortage, the AAGPBL ended with the growth of television and the ideal of the suburban home. Here, too, is the story of America's changing attitudes toward men and women and the roles we expect each to play. Author Sue Macy spent eleven years tracking down the women of the AAGPBL, interviewing them, and looking at their scrapbooks. Along the way she found that their odyssey did not end with the collapse of the league.

The same courage and spunk the players displayed on the field led them to get back in touch with each other in the 1980s, to remind the world of what they had achieved, and to take their rightful places in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Balancing the voices of the women of the league with a lively, insightful overview of the changing patterns of American life, A Whole New Ball Game is a sports story full of telling insights about who we expect to be at home and how women can get back to first base.

About this title

About the Author

Sue Macy is a lifelong baseball fan and has been a writer and editor for children and young adults for more than fifteen years. A member of Princeton's first women's softball team as an undergraduate, she is now an editorial director in the magazine division of Scholastic Inc.  She lives in Englewood, New Jersey.

From School Library Journal

Grade 5 Up-- An interesting and informative look at the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League that operated from 1945-1954. Using interviews with former players, various newspaper and statistical accounts, and sound research, Macy has pieced together a book that not only tells the story of the league but also provides sociological insight into the United States during World War II and the postwar era. While the players' accomplishments on the field are documented, readers will also become privy to the trials and tribulations these athletes faced, which went far beyond the daily hassles that male professional players encountered. They included severe rules governing personal appearance and off-field activities so as not to sacrifice femininity for athleticism. Macy includes a wonderful hodgepodge of useful appendixes that include the league's rules, teams, and statistics, along with a chronology, notes on the author's sources, further reading, and places to obtain more information on the AAGPBL. An array of black-and-white photos, including posed photos of the players checking their makeup during games and plenty of action shots, further enliven the very readable text. A Whole New Ball Game is a significant title that may have to be promoted, but its shelf life will far outlast the majority of sports books currently being published. --Tom S. Hurlburt, La Crosse Public Library, WI
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. BYR Paperbacks
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 1627790608
• ISBN 13: 9781627790604
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 144