Baseball Saved Us
- Subject
- Asian American & Pacific Islander
- Age
- 9-12 years
- Format
- Trade Paperback
- Pages
- 32
- Publisher
- Lee & Low Books
- Size
- 25.1 cm × 20.8 cm
- ISBN
- 9781880000199
Shorty and his family, along with thousands of Japanese Americans, are sent to an internment camp after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Fighting the heat and dust of the desert, Shorty and his father decide to build a baseball diamond and form a league in order to boost the spirits of the internees. Shorty quickly learns that he is playing not only to win, but to gain dignity and self-respect as well.
Baseball Saved Us is the ultimate rite of passage story. It will appeal again and again to readers who enjoy cheering for the underdog.
About the creators
Ken MochizukiAuthor
Ken Mochizuki was a writer, journalist, and former actor who made his picture-book debut with Baseball Saved Us. He was also the author of several other award-winning picture books published by Lee & Low, including Passage to Freedom and Heroes. He passed away in September 2025.
Dom LeeIllustrator
Dom Lee made his picture-book debut with Baseball Saved Us. He grew up in Seoul, South Korea, and went on to illustrate books in both the United States and Korea. His titles for Lee & Low include Passage to Freedom and Heroes, as well as the award-winning Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds. Lee's unique illustration style involves applying encaustic beeswax on paper, then scratching out images, and finally coloring the images with oil paint. Lee and his wife live in Hollis, New York.
Data provided by BiblioShare.
What reviewers said
"Splendidly evocative.... Fine debuts for author, illustrator."
"Stylish prose evocatively details the harsh injustice of the camps.... Movingly conveys the bleakness of camp life, with its cramped quarters, swirling dust storms and armed guards. The baseball scenes' motion and excitement lend effective contrast."
"Powerful." -- School Library Journal
CCBC Choices - Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
More like this
The Genius Who Saved Baseball: A Feel Good Baseball Novel
Robert E Ingram
Babe Ruth Saves Baseball!
Frank Murphy
Baseball Around the World: How the World Plays the Game
Chris Singleton
Much ADO about Baseball
Rajani LaRocca
Much Ado about Baseball
Rajani Larocca
Batter Up! History of Baseball
Dona Herweck Rice
Baseball Buzz
CC Joven
