School Library Journal Review

Gr 3-5 A short, readable, and attractive photobiography of the legendary player who broke baseball's color barrier. The book focuses on Robinson's childhood and early adulthood, with less emphasis than some longer biographies on his career as an athlete and his involvement with civil rights causes after his playing days were over. The narrative is written in a clear, matter-of-fact style. The archival black-and-white photographs are well chosen and of excellent quality. (Minor design quibbles: on the pages that begin each chapter, the text is overlaid on a photograph, making it difficult to read. Also, on some pages it is difficult to follow the flow of the text.) A time line of African-American milestones in sports history is appended. Although most libraries probably have several books on Robinson, this one has the advantage of being eye-catching and succinct. Todd Morning, Schaumburg Township Public Library, IL (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.