Nonfiction Wednesday

Thanks to Kid Lit Frenzy, I made a goal to read more children's nonfiction this year which I will be featuring on my blog every Wednesday.
 

 

Here are the nonfiction books I read this week:

 

 

Something to Prove: The Great Satchel Paige vs. the Rookie Joe DiMaggio by Robert Skead, illustrated by Floyd Cooper

 

2013-book, african-american, biography, narrative-nonfiction, nonfiction, nonfiction-challenge-2013, picture-book, sports

 

The New York Yankees put Joe DiMaggio to the test in 1936 to see if he could play in the big leagues. The test? Satchel Paige, a pitcher known to be the best, even though he had to continue to play in the Negro Leagues. I love this story and the tension and excitement Skead builds as the standoff develops. The illustrations are absolutely gorgeous, and I love how the text wraps itself around some of them. I love the page that shows Satch walking by the Yankees' dugout, tipping his cap and lockin...more The New York Yankees put Joe DiMaggio to the test in 1936 to see if he could play in the big leagues. The test? Satchel Paige, a pitcher known to be the best, even though he had to continue to play in the Negro Leagues. I love this story and the tension and excitement Skead builds as the standoff develops. The illustrations are absolutely gorgeous, and I love how the text wraps itself around some of them. I love the page that shows Satch walking by the Yankees' dugout, tipping his cap and locking eyes with DiMaggio. I love the sepia tones and Satch's ultimate triumph. I look forward to sharing this book with my students.     Daredevil: The Daring Life of Betty Skelton by Meghan McCarthy   2013-book, adventure, biography, gifted-girls, nonfiction, nonfiction-challenge-2013, picture-book, reading-gap-challenge-2013, women     I loved the story of Betty Skelton. She was amazing and inspiring - full of adventure and grit! She not only earned her private pilot's license at the age of sixteen, but she became a flight instructor, joined the Civil Air Patrol, had a career as an aerobat, set world speed and altitude records for aircraft, was the first woman to drive an Indy Car, set auto speed records, trained with the Mercury 7 astronauts, and was the first woman to be inducted into the International Aerobatic Hall of Fame...more I loved the story of Betty Skelton. She was amazing and inspiring - full of adventure and grit! She not only earned her private pilot's license at the age of sixteen, but she became a flight instructor, joined the Civil Air Patrol, had a career as an aerobat, set world speed and altitude records for aircraft, was the first woman to drive an Indy Car, set auto speed records, trained with the Mercury 7 astronauts, and was the first woman to be inducted into the International Aerobatic Hall of Fame, the NASCAR Int'l Motorsports Hall of Fame, and the Corvette Hall of Fame. She was also inducted into the Florida Women's Hall of Fame, Women in Aviation Pioneer Hall of Fame, National Aviation Hall of Fame, and Motorsports Hall of Fame. Whew. Can you believe they wouldn't let her be a commercial pilot when she wanted or actually join the Mercury 7 in Space because she was a woman?! Shameful. Fortunately, we don't have to live with that level of discrimination anymore because of women like her. This would be a great ladder to Tanya Lee Stone's Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream. What nonfiction did YOU read this week?