The World Series Curse

Ballpark Mysteries Super Special #1

by David A. Kelly, Mark Meyers (Illustrations)

It’s the BIGGEST baseball mystery yet—at the WORLD SERIES!
 
Red Sox versus Cubs. Game five. It looks like Mike and Kate are about to watch the Cubs win it all. But then someone starts messing with the team—ruining equipment, getting Cubs players in trouble, and even stirring up an old baseball curse. Now the Red Sox are coming back! Who will win the ultimate baseball trophy? And can Mike and Kate make sure it’s won fair and square?
 
Ballpark Mysteries are the all-star matchup of fun sleuthing and baseball action, perfect for readers of Ron Roy’s A to Z Mysteries and Matt Christopher’s sports books, and younger siblings of Mike Lupica fans. Each Ballpark Mystery also features Dugout Notes, with amazing baseball facts.

Genres: Baseball, Mystery, Sports, Childrens, Fiction

144 pages, Paperback

Published September 13, 2016

About the author

David A. Kelly is the author of over 30 children's books, including the bestselling Ballpark Mysteries series, the MVP series, the brand-new Football Mysteries series, and more.

Mr. Kelly is also the author of the early reader, Babe Ruth and the Baseball Curse and the picture books Tee Time on the Moon and Miracle Mud: Lena Blackburne and Secret Mud that Changed Baseball.

He has written about travel and technology for the New York Times, the Boston Globe, the Chicago Sun Times, and many other publications. Mr. Kelly lives in Newton, MA, with his family.

For more information, visit David’s webpage – www.davidakellybooks.com. He's available for school and library visits, in person or virtually.

Reviews

[Brina]

First super special in David A Kelley's Ballpark Mystery series for elementary school children. This came out appropriately right after the Cubs won the World Series and my kids and I all read the book in less than an hour. Even though it is well below their reading levels, my kids continue to enjoy Mike and Kate's adventures in various major league ball parks.

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good read and interesting. It was a cute book about the Cubs and the Red Sox playing in the World Series. There is a mystery of who is messing with the team and trying to sabotage them from goat poop to bouncy balls. It brings up a couple of "real" baseball curses, the curse of the Bambino and the goat curse.

[Julia]

Dallin loved this-it’s two of his favorite things: baseball and mysteries. I’m content if he does more of these on audiobooks but it was still a fun read aloud.

[Travis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ballpark: Chicago Cubs, Boston Red Sox

The first "Super Special" in the Ballpark Mysteries series is a doozy. It includes two storied Major League franchises, the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox, facing off in the World Series. This was just previous to the Chicago Cubs finally winning the World Series in October 2016. Both teams have previously been featured in the Ballpark Mysteries series (The Fenway Foul-Up and The Wrigley Riddle). It was nice to see some returning players, which makes this literary world feel slightly more real and connected.

The mystery contains plenty of red herrings. Multiple suspects are investigated. The longer length of the book allows for more sleuthing and more development of the new characters. It's still the Mike and Kate show, to be sure. The feelgood ending might not be totally in character of real world competitive athletes, but it's a fine resolution.

My four year old son really enjoyed this entry in the series. He was very interested in the bat shattering and the bouncy balls flying out. He even pointed out the cover artwork features the tiny detail of the balls, which I had not noticed. I don't think my son totally understood the motivation behind the culprit's disruption of the Cubs, but he's not yet versed in real world sports rivalries.

The dugout notes dealt with all things World Series. This included some duplication about the Chicago Cubs (goat curse) and Boston Red Sox (curse of the Bambino) from their respective books in the series.

[Ping Jun · Rating 5 out of 5]

Someone is trying to sabotage the Cubs game at the World Series. The person that was sabotaging the game started by trying to get one of the best player off the field. The players name is Louie. Red is a sports reporter who is a White Sox fan. First, the suspect put goat poop in baseball mud.Second they put bouncy balls in a hollow baseball bat. When Louie hit the ball his bat broke and the umpire saw what was in it,so they suspended him. Right before the final game of the World Series Mike and Kate found who the suspect was. IT WAS RED THE SPORTS REPORTER.

[Kingston N.]

My favorite character was Billy the Goat because I think he was very funny and pretty cute.
What surprised me was that Billy the Goat ran away.
I would not change the ending because it was very interesting.

[Nathaniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

i liked it

[Caleb · Rating 3 out of 5]

i can not remember when i read this it was good

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

We listened to this 1.5 hour book on CD on a road trip. It was okay. Not the greatest but a cute story. LOTS of baseball information so if you have a baseball lover, they would enjoy it I bet!

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the story but my favorite part are the fun fact in the N.A. of the.