Synopses & Reviews
Dillontown was built upon a gold mine. Yet for the villagers, life is about something even more valuable: baseball. Home to the Dillontown Nine, they would give anything to join the ranks of professional ballplayers?even their gold. Yet to make it, they will need to defeat the world champion Chicago White Stockings?and their crooked owner, willing to wager anything for the mine, and willing to do anything to avoid losing. Fortunately, Dillontown is home to two boys who know a little something about winning. One is young Jack Dillon, nephew to Dillontown founder Long John Dillon. The other? A boy on the run, in need of a second chance: none other than Billy the Kid.
One of the fi nest storytellers of our time, John H. Ritter brings the Old West to life in this prequel to his breakout success, The Boy Who Saved Baseball.
Review
a JLG selection "A strike is a strike, a ball is a ball. But what happens when the rules aren't so clear? You may scream at umpires, but you'll cheer and whoop for a kiddo who's trying with all his heart and guts to find a right way."
—Gary Schmidt, two-time Newbery Honor winner and National Book Award Finalist "Screaming at the Ump will make kids cheer! Baseball fans will love these funny, heart-warming characters, and the unique view of the game from behind the plate."
—Tim Green, New York Times bestselling author of Baseball Great and Best of the Best "This novel is a true original. If youve never read about umpires school before (and, seriously, who has?) youre going to enjoy this book. Vernicks writing is funny, poignant, and especially wise when it comes to dispelling the preconceived notions we sometimes cling to." —Todd Strasser, internationally bestselling author of The Wave, Fallout, and other titles
"Vernick laces her tale with humor, plus credible insights into the truly difficult art and techniques of umpiring, as she leads her aspiring journalist to make some good choices in the wake of a realization that people (parents included) should have more than one chance to get their calls right."
—Kirkus Reviews
"Multiple threads come together in a well-crafted way when Casey realizes the same skills an umpire needs—being objective and fair, knowing the rules, and being int he right spot to make the call—also apply to becoming a good journalist and healing his broken relationship with his mother."
—Publishers Weekly
"Its the peek into the world of professional umpire training that carries the interest here, culminating in the fictional but tantalizing event, You Suck, Ump! Day, in which students perform under intense pressure of a local crowd recruited to heckle them on the field."
—Bulletin
"Believable characters, fast-paced action, ample dialogue, Casey's first-person voice, and great descriptions of Zeke's hyperactivity make this a probable home run for lots of middle-schoolers."
—Booklist Online
"A solid choice for middle-grade readers."
—School Library Journal
Synopsis
Dillontown was built upon a gold mine, but baseball is more valuable to the villagers. They would give anything for the Dillontown Nine to join the ranks of professional ballplayers--even help an outlaw on the run. Ritter brings the Old West to life in this prequel to "The Boy Who Saved Baseball."
Synopsis
The exciting prequel to the bestselling The Boy Who Saved Baseball.
The fate of a Wild West gold-mining town rests in the hands of two individuals. One is a twelve-yearold boy with a love and instinct for baseball unmatched by any grown-up. The other is the country?s most infamous outlaw, on the run and looking for peace of mind. Together, they pair up to prove that heroes can emerge from anywhere. John H. Ritter brings the Old West to life in this prequel to his breakout success, The Boy Who Saved Baseball.
Synopsis
Twelve-year-old Casey Snowden, who lives with his dad and grandfather at their family-run umpire school, must navigate the start of middle school, his mothers unwelcome reappearance in his life, and the possibility that a student umpire might be a famous fallen baseball player in disguise.
Synopsis
Twelve-year-old Casey Snowden knows everything about being an umpire. His dad and grandfather run a New Jersey umpire school, Behind the Plate, and Casey lives and breathes baseball. Caseys dream, however, is to be a reporter—objective, impartial, and fair, just like an ump. But when he stumbles upon a sensational story involving a former major league player in exile, he finds that the ethics of publishing it are cloudy at best. This emotionally charged coming-of-age novel about baseball, divorce, friendship, love, and compassion challenges its readers to consider all the angles before calling that strike.
About the Author
John H. Ritter lives in San Diego, California.