Year of the Meatball

This laugh-out-loud contemporary middle grade combines two cultures, three llamas, a new co-ed baseball team, and a healthy dose of Italian meatballs. Finding the true meaning of friendship could be Joey’s biggest homerun yet.

Joey Marconi's life in the Bronx covered all the bases―the best pizzeria on the planet, a winning baseball team, and Yankee Stadium just a pitcher's throw away. But when his family moves to the country, Joey slides into a major slump. To make matters worse, his Nonna's legendary meatballs are starting to taste lousy.

Then he meets Bobbi Ming―a baseball lover whose face and heart bear the scars of a tragic accident. Joey's not sure what to think of their budding friendship, but he relies on her to help navigate his new life―including school bullies, Nonna acting crazier than his curveball, and a trio of loveable llamas. There's a lot to figure out.

Joey and Bobbi make a strong team, but when Bobbi buckles under the weight of being teased, Joey must decide where his true loyalties lie―with his new friend, or the biggest baseball game of his life.

In third grade, Angela Calabrese discovered the power of words when a holiday poem she wrote moved her teacher to tears. She's been tinkering with words ever since. Angela is married to a warm-hearted guy who's specialty is making her laugh. She's a proud mama to two daughters and lives with her husband and their pampered cat in upstate New York.