Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Jackie Robinson

Rate this book
A biography of the first black baseball player to be accepted by a major league team.

2238 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 1980

10 people are currently reading
89 people want to read

About the author

Joshua E. Hanft

14 books1 follower

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
40 (35%)
4 stars
40 (35%)
3 stars
26 (22%)
2 stars
5 (4%)
1 star
3 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
Profile Image for Tommy.
2 reviews
February 22, 2008
This book tells a cruel story of an amazing athlete known as Jackie Robinson. Growing up his parents were poor people and he was sent to camps because he robbed stores. When he went to school he truimphed in all most every sport: football, track, basketball, and baseball. Jackie broke many school track records. The sport that Jackie most sucesseded in was baseball. When he was in high school he started to play baseball. He was so good at it that Negro league scouts came to watch him play. After wards he starting playing in the Negro league. He played for the Chicago Bruiens (Hanft 106). The owner of the team was really excited about having him on the team. One day Jackie received excellent news he got a call from the Major League Baseball (MLB). Finally after all the work Jackie made it to the majors. His first game he was booed and cokes were being thrown at him(Hanft 188). After a thought first season he became one of the best baseball players ever! By many he's still considered the bravest baseball and sport player that had ever lived. I recomened this book to people that believe that dreams really can come true.

This is author is extremely special. He's telling about a colored man breaking the color bareal. I love how this author describes what Jackie Robinson was going through. Can you imagine what he was going through. He was the first colored player to ever play baseball. Now the majority of the baseball players are colored. In conclusion this author is telling us that everyone can make a change.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Trevor Wetzel.
26 reviews1 follower
Read
December 2, 2013
Joshua E. Hanft has written a fantastic biography on Jackie Robinson. The story starts out during Jackie's childhood, describing how his parents were and what happened to him as a child. The story then moves to when Jackie was a young adult and tells stories of what he accomplished. After this, the story transitions to his college life, military service, and his time spent in the Negro Leagues. During his time in the Negro Leagues, he is scouted by the owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers, a man named Branch Rickey. Together, Branch Rickey and Jackie Robinson would change the world as we know it. The two would break the color barrier in professional sports and change how blacks are treated. Jackie goes on to have an amazing career in the big leagues and is the first black inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Jackie Robinson is the main character of the story. The author does a fantastic job describing how Jackie thinks about events during the entire story. Jackie is very proud of his race and he expresses his pride all of the time. Another main character is, Branch Rickey. Branch Rickey is a successful man who is owner of the Brooklyn Dodgers. The author describes a larger man who likes to get attention and accomplish new tasks.

The setting of the story is expressed very well. The atmosphere of each stadium that Jackie plays in plays a huge role in the story. At the beginning of the story, Jackie is heavily criticized while he is playing, which effects how Jackie has to behave. But, Jackie grows on the fans and begins to become a fan-favorite in the league, which causes the atmospheres of the stadiums to become more delightful for Jackie.

This book was very informative and enjoyable. I would recommend it to any reader who enjoys baseball, segregation, or Jackie Robinson in general. Any reader that can read at a chapter book level can read this book. The book is not written at a difficult level. It is perfect for any reader.


Profile Image for Natalie.
3,384 reviews188 followers
November 12, 2016
I really didn't know anything about Jackie Robinson before reading this obscure little bio. Sports have never really been my thing and most of the time I feel like sports stars/celebrities are given WAY more attention than they deserve.

Jackie Robinson deserves all the acclaim he gets and then some. The author did a fantastic job setting the stage and climate for exactly what Jackie was up against. Racism ran rampant and being the first black man on a major league baseball team was no small feat.

Branch Rickey was the manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers and he made a decision that he was going to sign a black player. It was a bold move on his part, but nothing compared to what the black man chosen would have to go through. Jackie was playing in the Negro Leagues at this time and caught the eye of some of Branch's scouts. When Branch met with Jackie he asked him for three years. He said that Jackie was going to face all kinds of racism and horrible treatment, but Jackie was going to have to hold his temper.

As I read about the abuse that was lobbed Jackie's way it broke my heart. I just can't fathom the notion of hating someone simply because of the color of their skin. I tend to go off into my own little idealized world where everyone is happy and kind, but this past election has shown me that people are angry and there is still much hatred in the world. Even in the United States.

There was one part of the story that really touched me. A lot of Jackie's own team members resented having him on the team, but the author related a story about the team growing quiet as they listened to the horrible racist slurs hurled at Jackie.

The usual Dodgers' dugout grew silent. Those who had wanted Jackie on their team were angered at the stream of abuse from Phillies' dugout. But more importantly, those who has opposed Jackie had begun to feel uneasy. There are moments in a person's life when it becomes clear that the way they look at the world is wrong. For many of those Dodgers, who had learned prejudice and bigotry from an early age, this was one of those moments. They could not help but imagine themselves in Jackie's position, hearing all those hateful words.

I believe this is the only way for the world to become a better place. Understanding. We have to get out of our comfort zones. Unfortunately that often involves marginalized members of society risking their own well being. Like Jackie. It's a sad state of affairs. I remember having a moment like Jackie's teammates. I was listening to stories from illegal immigrants. Most of them brought here as children. They came from good people. People who are good, law-abiding citizens. I was listening to all the challenges they faced because they are here "illegally," even though the United States was their only home. The place they grew up in, the place they loved. It made me sick at heart and completely changed the way I viewed immigrants. It opened my mind. When ideas and thoughts become faces, especially the faces of people we know and love, it changes everything.

I try to see the world with an open-mind, but reading this reminded me that I could be even better. This election has shown me that I need to be brave like those who have gone before and speak out. This election has given me a small taste of what it feels like when your concerns seem completely ignored. I will strive to be braver and fight against hatred. I will be better and kinder.

2 reviews
December 10, 2021
I think that this book was very knowledgeable. Jackie Robinson was the first African American man to make it into the Major Leagues. With the help of the general manager for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Branch Rickey. Even though the people didn't like the idea of a black man coming to play with white people, Branch Rickey took a chance and wanted to make a difference. He saw raw talent in Robinson. When Jackie first came to the team he was a little nervous but did not let any man or women get into his head when it came time to get on the field. But I think that people should really read this book, because you can learn things that you didn't know about jackie and his family, and also all the things that he had to go through back then.
Profile Image for Juliana T.
12 reviews1 follower
April 14, 2015
I read Jackie Robinson (Heroes of America Illustrated Lives) by Joshua E. Handy. This book was personally not my type. The book was very informative about the history of the past for Jackie Robinson, and how that lead to his future of playing on a The Major League Baseball team of The Dodgers. It was a fun start, but when they started to crunch numbers and show the scoring, I couldn't keep all of the numbers straight.

The time frame of the book was back in the past when black (African American) people were treated very poorly by white people. When they couldn't sit in the front of any busses without getting punished. The family all had to live with this, until Jackie had started to become more popular, but even then, they were still treated badly.

This book doesn't have much personality to it, it isn't suspenseful, and it isn't action packed, but it is true. The most suspense there is is when Jackie gets sent to the military, and people might have thought, is he going to ever get out? The most action is when Jackie played baseball, but again, there isn't very much.

I would recommend this book to people who don't want a long book, and who love baseball in general, because Jackie Robinson was the first black baseball player. I would also recommend this book to someone who is great at keeping track of dates, and a good number cruncher. Otherwise, this book was a very good book, and it told the story of Jackie Robinson.
1 review
July 11, 2016
“Jackie Robinson” is biography collection written by Joshua E.Hanft. This book is written
about Jackie Robinson’s life. Jackie Robinson is one of the famous people in the world.
He is a famous baseball player. He is the world's first black major leaguer. This story is up to his becoming of a major leaguer.

Good points of this book is where you can learn about him. His life is dramatic. The beginning of his life was the worst. Because he was black. Once upon a time the black treatment was terrible. Blacks had been hated by many whites. But he made an effort even while being hated. Also endured a cruel treatment. He continued to work hard. Eventually, he became a great man. I was impressed by his mental strength and action that left a great achievement while being difficult to confront.

One bad thing about this book is it has a large number of pages. I think that it is painful English to read for people who have weak English.

People who are interested in stories of great men will like this book. It should be well understood the importance of not giving up by reading this book.
18 reviews1 follower
December 11, 2016
This was a very interesting read by Joshua Hanft. It was really incredible to learn about Jackie Robinson and what life was like for him, before his major league days. Even after all the names he'd been called, and all the times he'd been pushed around, he still was able to rise up above and reach his goal of making it to the big leagues. He shows unbelievable courage and strength to keep fighting for his dream. He put his mind to it, and didn't stop until he accomplished it. When he made it there, he still wasn't accepted for a while because of his skin color, and he would have things thrown at him from the crowd. Although, this didn't bother him because at the end of the day, he didn't care how others viewed him - he knew he had to be himself and no one could change that. Eventually, later in his career people started to realize that he could play just as good as any white player could. I would recommend this book to anyone that loves sports and to anyone that loves action-filled stories.
16 reviews1 follower
December 1, 2014
The book is kind of far from an amazing book because there wasn't a lot of thrills in it. It was just a book about a famous baseball player. Also I'm really not a baseball fan so it wasn't a book I would like. The book really didn't have any parts that had me on the edge of the seat except when he was playing on the Dodgers during the World Series. The book started when Jackie was a boy living in neighborhood where little colored people lived. When growing up he faced a lot of racial events. The author described Jackie's life pretty good and described Jackie as a strong person because he stood up to many people about his rights. The strongest thing about the book is the events Jackie faced on his way to the Major League that the author briefly described. The book was an ok book but not an amazing book in my opinion.
Profile Image for Mac Franklin.
25 reviews1 follower
December 15, 2015
I loved this book it's called "Jackie Robinson" by Joshua Hanft. This book was great because it told he everything about being a black person and being a white person back in the 1940's.
This book is about a boy named Jackie Robinson. He is a very athletic athlete who played every sport imaginable. And he was a star in every one of them. He played baseball, basketball, football, and track. He is a beast.
I recommend this book to kids who love sports and to the kids who like to read about people playing sports. Also I would recommend this book to people who did not like how people treated the black people fairly.
1 review
October 30, 2013
I really enjoyed this book about Jackie Robinson. It helped me learn a lot about what he went through in his life. The main reason why I enjoyed reading this book is because I saw the baseball movie "42" that is based on the life of Jackie Robinson so I had a pretty good idea of what I was going to read. I was very attached to this book each chapter because it just kept getting more better & interesting. Overall, I would recommend this book to all my peers.
2 reviews
March 11, 2015

I really enjoyed this book about Jackie Robinson. It helped me learn a lot about what he went through in his life. The main reason why I enjoyed reading this book is because I saw the baseball movie "42" that is based on the life of Jackie Robinson so I had a pretty good idea of what I was going to read. I was very attached to this book each chapter because it just kept getting more better & interesting. Overall, I would recommend this book to all my friends.
Profile Image for Richie L.
4 reviews2 followers
January 24, 2013

I loved this story and learned a lot about the history of the game I love. It is amazing what Jackie had to go though to become the player he was. Not only did he have to practice the game but he had to tolerate those racist people who tried to destroy the game for him. Read this book and learn lessons about baseball as well as life in general...
Profile Image for Matthew.
456 reviews1 follower
August 2, 2015
Great story if you are baseball fan. I find it incredibly sad that there was even a color barrier that had to be broken. Robinson was quite a man, I am not sure that I would have had the bravery or the self control to do what he did.
Profile Image for Jordan.
1 review
October 9, 2008
I think this was a great book. It showed that Jackie Robinson was a great person and also a great baseball player.
Profile Image for Justin carpita.
23 reviews
December 31, 2008
I'll have to find this again. I read this when I was a kid & I remember how much it meant to me when I was young.
Profile Image for Austin Maughan.
35 reviews1 follower
May 22, 2010
A good book. Really shows how black were treated . Very interesting
Profile Image for Ethan McMillen.
20 reviews
November 15, 2016
In my option this book was like the last book I read where it was okay in the beginning but towards the end it just got like very boring like it was just like numbers and other boring stuff
2 reviews
Read
May 25, 2018
My thoughts on reading this book " Jackie Robinson " by Joshua E. Hanft gave me such an inspiration on playing baseball to my limit and teaching me how the real game of baseball use to work in the past with the First African American to play, Jackie Robinson was such an athlete who gives me potential to being better at the game.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.