Brown Enough: a tale of a mixed-race baseball team, summer of '56

by Ken Ohm

Part historical fiction, part memoir, this novel takes place over a 10-week period in the summer of 1956 in a small town in the mid-west. It is based on a true story of the social and athletic achievements of an eleven-man mixed-race baseball team, seven African-American, three Hispanics, and one Caucasian. Under the leadership of an aging charismatic African-American manager, the Brown Bombers tolerate the nearness of racism as part of the price they pay for the privilege of playing the game they love. Some abuses are blatantly present while others are more subtle. However, the game itself offers a focus and comfort quiet apart from the daily lives of this diverse group of young men as they strive to perfect their baseball skills. A daily perspective of the team is delivered by a single white boy, determined by the manager to be “brown enough.” With a “magic” bat, a lucky arrowhead and an expanding fan base, the Bombers ultimately achieve a success beyond expectations.

304 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2018

Reviews

[Roxanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book. I am a native Californian but have lived in Kansas for almost 6 years now because my husband's family is in Kansas. I got this book at my local library and it has been designated a Kansas notable book. The author writes about listening to Harry Carey announcing live broadcast baseball from the St. Louis Cardinals on his radio. He loved his unique voice and exciting descriptions. I worked in Palm Springs at a restaurant and I waited on Harry Carry every morning because he lived there in the off season. I remember him so well, he was really a unique person. The second thing that special about this book was how different nationalities played together and they all loved the sport so much. Someone in my family was on the Brooklyn Dodgers when Jackie Robinson was on the team. When they traveled for away games the players were seperated by race and they rode in different cars, stayed at other hotels, and ate some where else. My family member said he thought that was wrong but he was told that is how it is. Jackie never complained about this situation much to his credit. Later in life when they were older they met up again and had a great visit. I have traveled all over Kansas now and it is made of many small towns.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting memoir of his life long love of baseball and growing up in small town Kansas.

[Winfield Public Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Met WPL's January 2020 Reading Challenge for a Book Set in Kansas.

[Kathy KS · Rating 3 out of 5]

If sports fans enjoy reading about the specific play-by-play of town baseball games in the mid-1950s, this is a good place to start. But the reader also learns about how the game as changed (playing for love of the game, rather than huge contracts), how race relations did, or didn't, have an effect on small-towns in Kansas, and growing up in another era.

Of course, I also enjoyed the setting since I have spent much of my younger life in Emporia and several of the small towns that Ken's team played. It's fun to recognize streets, businesses, even surnames, that have been a part of my own world.

Advertised as "part memoir, part fiction," some of the characters are composites of those Ohm has known over the years.