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Free Baseball

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Free Baseball is a children's novel by Sue Corbett, first published in 2006.

Plot summary

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Felix is a Cuban boy who came to the USA with his mother when he was three years old. He has a passion for baseball and wins two tickets to a minor-league baseball game via a radio competition. Going to the game with his babysitter, they become separated when Felix learns that the opposing team has a Cuban player, believing that he might be able to share information about Felix's father, a famous baseball player on the Cuban national team who stayed behind when Felix and his mother emigrated.

Development

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Corbett had the idea for the book after an incident at a baseball game when she became separated from her daughter Karina and was able to find her as all of the children were wearing the cok (the team name) team shirts.[1]

Reception

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School Library Journal described the novel as an "engaging, well-written story with a satisfying ending."[2] The Topeka Capital-Journal called it a "wonderful mix of self-discovery and baseball."[3] Kids Reads thought that Felix was a "richly drawn character".[4]

Awards and nominations

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  • 2006 Selected by the Junior Library Guild[5]
  • 2008 Nominated for the Young Hoosier Book Award (final results not yet announced)[6]
  • 2008 Nominated for the Virginia Readers Choice Award (final results not yet announced)[7]
  • 2009 Nominated for the Nutmeg Book Award (final results not yet announced)[8]

References

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  1. ^ "Author Interview: Sue Corbett on Free Baseball". Cynthia Leitich Smith.BlogSpot.com. 2006-02-06. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
  2. ^ "Grades 5 & Up". School Library Journal. 2006-02-01. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
  3. ^ "Soothe baseball fever with words". The Topeka Capital-Journal. 2006-07-11. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
  4. ^ "Free Baseball by Sue Corbett". Kids Reads. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
  5. ^ Junior Library Guild
  6. ^ "Young Hoosier Book Award". Archived from the original on 2008-06-09. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
  7. ^ "Virginia Readers Choice Award". Archived from the original on 2008-05-11. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
  8. ^ Nutmeg Book Award
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