Baseball in April and Other Stories
The Mexican American author Gary Soto draws on his own experience of growing up in California’s Central Valley in this finely crafted collection of eleven short stories that reveal big themes in the small events of daily life. Crooked teeth, ponytailed girls, embarrassing grandfathers, imposter Barbies, annoying brothers, Little League tryouts, and karate lessons weave the colorful fabric of Soto’s world. The smart, tough, vulnerable kids in these stories are Latino, but their dreams and...
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A contemporary classic about the pitfalls and triumphs of the teenage years is given a fresh new look for its tenth anniversary. In this unique collection of short stories, the small events of daily life reveal big themes-love and friendship, youth and growing up, success and failure. Calling on his own experiences of growing up in California's Central Valley, poet Gary Soto brings to life the joys and pains of young people everywhere. The smart, tough, vulnerable kids in these stories are Latino, but their dreams and desires belong to all of us.Publishers WeeklyDiaz and Gongora give Soto's heartfelt collection just the right spark of Latino flavor in this sharp audio production. From Jesse, a nine-year-old struggling to improve his baseball skills in "Baseball in April" to Veronica, who is crushed when her new, much cherished Barbie doll is ruined, Soto introduces vivid characters who struggle with the longing, hope and acceptance that are part of everyday life. Soto's accessible writing voice and poetic language permeate these 11 tales of first dates, worries about one's looks and the difficulties of dealing with idiosyncratic family members. With the help of solid performances (and crisp pronunciation of the smattering of Spanish words and phrases) by Diaz and Gongora, listeners will take away a real sense of what it was like for many Mexican-American kids growing up in California's Central Valley (including Fresno, Soto's hometown) not so many years ago. Ages 10-up. (Jan.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\|
\ From the Publisher"[Soto's] sensitivity to young people's concerns and his ability to portray the world as it is perceived by children is nothing less than remarkable."—Los Angeles Times Book Review\ "A fine collection of stories that offers a different cultural perspective about feelings common to all teenagers. Soto writes well and with tremendous insight into the process of growing up."—The Boston Globe\ "Will strike chords of recognition in readers of all ages."—The Horn Book\ \ \ \ \ Publishers Weekly\ - Publisher's Weekly\ Diaz and Gongora give Soto's heartfelt collection just the right spark of Latino flavor in this sharp audio production. From Jesse, a nine-year-old struggling to improve his baseball skills in "Baseball in April" to Veronica, who is crushed when her new, much cherished Barbie doll is ruined, Soto introduces vivid characters who struggle with the longing, hope and acceptance that are part of everyday life. Soto's accessible writing voice and poetic language permeate these 11 tales of first dates, worries about one's looks and the difficulties of dealing with idiosyncratic family members. With the help of solid performances (and crisp pronunciation of the smattering of Spanish words and phrases) by Diaz and Gongora, listeners will take away a real sense of what it was like for many Mexican-American kids growing up in California's Central Valley (including Fresno, Soto's hometown) not so many years ago. Ages 10-up. (Jan.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\|\ \ \ Children's Literature\ - Lois Rubin Gross\ A short story collection that resists the stereotypes of troubled Latino kids, although the children are unmistakably part of their Mexican-American community. The characters that populate this book are bright, motivated youngsters trying to sort out the problems that all young people have with family, school, and friends. From the girl who is given more freedom than she is ready for, to the boy who begs to enroll in expensive karate classes and finds them to be less valuable than he had thought, these are children experiencing universal emotions that will easily speak to readers of all ethnicity's. 1998 (orig.\ \ \ \ \ Los Angeles Times Book Review[Soto's] sensitivity to young people's concerns and his ability to portray the world as it is perceived by children is nothing less than remarkable.\ \ \ \ \ The Boston GlobeA fine collection of stories that offers a different cultural perspective about feelings common to all teenagers. Soto writes well and with tremendous insight into the process of growing up.\ \ \ \ \ The Horn BookWill strike chords of recognition in readers of all ages.\ \
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