Wes Tooke’s King of the Mound, My Summer with Satchel Paige is likely a story you haven’t stumbled upon. But I urge you to take a look. Request this goodness from the library or ‘add to cart’ on Amazon or something. Because this is the kind of middle grade fiction that will educate you, break your heart AND make you believe in humanity. A tall order, for sure. But Satchel Paige is that kind of superstar.
I’m not a baseball person. (For the record, Cubs fan here.) We play baseball for fun in the backyard, none of the four kiddos play baseball as a sport, and we don’t sit and watch this sport on TV.
As I was working my way through the atrocities of school segregation and voting rights, I somehow stumbled upon segregation in sports. This was new to me. It shouldn’t have been, but truthfully, my mind doesn’t pull to sports on the regular, mmmmkay? I had no idea that there were black baseball leagues. Or the Negro Baseball Leagues. I knew of Jackie Robinson but didn’t realize the big-ness of his start in MLB. So through this little twist-y, turn-y adventure, I landed on Satchel Paige (1906-1982).
This man was nothing short of a superstar. This man killed it in baseball with his pitching. He would often have the rest of his team sit out during an inning because he was so sure (and competent) in his pitching that no one could get a hit on him.
I read King of the Mound, My Summer with Satchel Paige by Wes Tooke, and everything in me is urging you to read this. (No shame here in reading middle grade books as a 40 year old. Reading is learning, learning is good. Pretty simple.)
Nick has been at Mayo working through polio (!) for more than a year. He has lost contact with his buddies. His dad visited once. His mom passed away. Their family has zero money. His dad plays for the local semi-pro baseball team in Bismarck, ND. And guess who’s the pitcher on the team? Mr. Satchel Paige himself!
Satchel helps Nick understand that setbacks (polio) don’t define him. While Nick and his dad think black and white individuals are equal, not all of the baseball fans or staff memebers they encounter feel the same.
Ain’t no man can avoid being born average, but there ain’t no man got to be common.
Satchel Paige
This book was such a fascinating and heartbreaking first-hand look at segregation and the hatred in the US. Some of the elements I read were just baffling and embarrassing to read and yet, I need to read this. The more I know, the better I can advocate. The more my kiddos know, the better they can advocate.
Again, that’s why I love reading! A chance to learn, grow, understand.
Satchel Paige finally ended up playing for the MLB at 42 years old (and a little bit beyond), which as I understand it, is dinosaur age for pro sports. He was F-I-N-A-L-L-Y inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971.
This man could pitch the business off of anyone and yet, because the color of his skin, his opportunities, his paycheck, his lifestyle were limited. I hope this man gets his glory even after his
See more Satchel Paige book options here on my Instagram.
XO from this heart to yours, Kelly ❤