Book Nook: Who Got Game? Baseball

I recently had a chance to see a copy of Who Got Game? Baseball. In this first installation of the Who Got Game? series, New York Times bestselling award-wining author Derrick Barnes (Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut) celebrates the unheralded, unrecognized, yet remarkable people and stories that define the history of baseball.
· Meet unsung pioneers, like John “Bud” Fowler, William Edward White, and brothers Moses Fleetwood Walker and Weld Walker, four African Americans who integrated white teams decades before Jackie Robinson.
· Discover unforgettable moments, like the time a 17-year old girl named Jackie Mitchell struck out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig.
· Marvel at records. Did you know that Japanese superstar Sadaharu Oh has a whopping 113 more career homers than Hank Aaron?

And that’s just for starters! This lively illustrated collection of shiny nuggets of baseball lore will transform readers into a superfan who knows the game better than anyone else.

I had a chance to interview the author to learn more.

Why did you write this book?
I'm a huge sports fan, but I'm a bigger fan of learning about the background and understanding the history and culture of sports. I grew up in Kansas City, MO and have always been a fan of the Royals.

What was your favorite part about working on the book?
The research. I purposefully looked up a) individuals, stories, stats and records that I had knowledge of but wanted to know more about, or b) some of the unknown pillars of the sport that almost never get enough attention.

What's your favorite thing about baseball?
The ebb and flow of the innings. The epic stand off between the batter and pitcher. The anticipation of knowing that at any moment, something breathtaking and record breaking could happen like a series altering grand slams, a well timed stolen base or a dramatic ninth inning comeback.

Derrick Barnes is the winner of the 2018 Ezra Jack Keats Book Award for outstanding new writer, and his picture book Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut took home four honors at the 2018 American Library Association’s Youth Media Awards: the Coretta Scott King Author Honor and Illustrator Honor, the Newbery Honor, and the Caldecott Honor. Derrick is also the author of the New York Times bestselling picture book The King of Kindergarten, and the bestselling chapter book series Ruby and the Booker Boys. Derrick lives in Charlotte, NC, with his wife, Dr. Tinka Barnes, and their four sons, all of whom play sports.