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Call Him Jack: The Story of Jackie Robinson, Black Freedom Fighter
An enthralling, eye-opening portrayal of this barrier-breaking American hero as a lifelong, relentlessly proud fighter for Black justice and civil rights.
According to Martin Luther King, Jr., Jackie Robinson was “a sit-inner before the sit-ins, a freedom rider before the Freedom Rides.” According to Hank Aaron, Robinson was a leader of the Black Power movement before there was a Black Power movement. According to his wife, Rachel Robinson, he was always Jack, not Jackie―the diminutive form of his name bestowed on him in college by white sports writers. And throughout his whole life, Jack Robinson was a fighter for justice, an advocate for equality, and an inspiration beyond just baseball.
From prominent Robinson scholars Yohuru Williams and Michael G. Long comes Call Him Jack, an exciting biography that recovers the real person behind the legend, reanimating this famed figure’s legacy for new generations, widening our focus from the sportsman to the man as a whole, and deepening our appreciation for his achievements on the playing field in the process.
According to Martin Luther King, Jr., Jackie Robinson was “a sit-inner before the sit-ins, a freedom rider before the Freedom Rides.” According to Hank Aaron, Robinson was a leader of the Black Power movement before there was a Black Power movement. According to his wife, Rachel Robinson, he was always Jack, not Jackie―the diminutive form of his name bestowed on him in college by white sports writers. And throughout his whole life, Jack Robinson was a fighter for justice, an advocate for equality, and an inspiration beyond just baseball.
From prominent Robinson scholars Yohuru Williams and Michael G. Long comes Call Him Jack, an exciting biography that recovers the real person behind the legend, reanimating this famed figure’s legacy for new generations, widening our focus from the sportsman to the man as a whole, and deepening our appreciation for his achievements on the playing field in the process.
240 pages, Hardcover
First published September 20, 2022
11 people are currently reading
208 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
January 15, 2023
It’s Jackie Robinson’s birthday month and I always honor him by revisiting the story of his life. He was a pioneer and trailblazer in so many aspects of society that I cannot help but call him one of my American heroes. Just this week, I read a beautifully crafted picture book for readers of all ages that should not be missed. Yet, even though I have read most of the adult volumes on Jackie available at my library, there is always room for another book on my shelf. This year, I found a new biography for middle grade and possibly middle school age students that details Jackie’s life in a way that is accessible for them. As a teacher of students in this age bracket, I was curious to see this new volume and selected for this year’s read.
Yohuru Williams and Michael Long are lifelong Jackie Robinson historians. They have both worked for his foundation and museum and appeared in Ken Burns’ documentary about Jackie’s life. Most full length books though have been written for adults. My two favorites are Opening Day by Jonathan Eig and Jackie Robinson: A Biography by Arnold Rampersad. Both are special in their own way as well as a plethora of books for people of all ages by Jackie’s daughter Sharon. Yet, most volumes are designed with adult readers in mind, and I find this problematic as Jackie’s life moves farther into the past and his life becomes one of a historical figure rather than just a baseball figure. His debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers will be 76 years old this year, and his number has been retired by all of Major League Baseball for a quarter of a century. It is time to write biographies of Jackie Robinson’s life with younger readers in mind so that they know who this important man was on and off of the baseball diamond.
Williams and Long craft this book with lots of photographs and primary based documents so that the book becomes meaningful for kids, rather than just a laundry list of events. I hear from kids on a daily basis why history is boring and that they do not want to study it and are only in class because the school needs them there. History is far from boring; history is happening. Newspaper clippings, photographs depicting all stages of Jackie’s life, question boxes designed to make kids think show the meticulousness of creating this book for kids who might be reading it for class or for a report. The documents and photos teaches about Jackie on their level so that they can come away with an appreciation for his place in history.
The volume touches on all the important aspects in Jackie’s life. Because it is a book for youth readers, each chapter is between seven and ten pages in length, including photographs. Kids with shorter attention spans will still be able to grasp this book because even key events might only take up three paragraphs and one newspaper clipping in print. The authors do not leave out anything down to Jackie’s political involvement during and after his playing field. What many adults may not know is that he was a civil rights activist before the term was coined and that he won the Spingarn Medal from the NAACP and gave a speech at the 1963 March on Washington. All the while these political events that would change the course of American history were unfolding, Jackie was on the front lines and encouraging other athletes and celebrities to do more. As heroes to many children and adults, it was all that an athlete could do to be political. Perhaps today’s athlete is more vocal due to Jackie’s participation sixty years ago. Kids who follow sports can relate to that anecdote as well as any.
Today there is a Jackie Robinson Museum in Manhattan. People from all walks of life are welcome to visit. This is is where Williams and Long found many of the source documents that are present in this book. Tomorrow I will attempt to teach Jackie Robinson’s participation in the civil rights movement in conjugation with Martin Luther King Jr to a group of middle school students who otherwise do not enjoy history class. By utilizing the pictures and source documents in the book, the students will see that history is happening and hopefully appreciate Jackie Robinson’s place in it, maybe not as much as I do but enough to see his merit as a key figure of the 20th century. Thank you to Yohuru Williams and Michael Long who have made Jackie Robinson’s extraordinary life accessible to 21st century kids.
⚾️ 5 stars ⚾️
Yohuru Williams and Michael Long are lifelong Jackie Robinson historians. They have both worked for his foundation and museum and appeared in Ken Burns’ documentary about Jackie’s life. Most full length books though have been written for adults. My two favorites are Opening Day by Jonathan Eig and Jackie Robinson: A Biography by Arnold Rampersad. Both are special in their own way as well as a plethora of books for people of all ages by Jackie’s daughter Sharon. Yet, most volumes are designed with adult readers in mind, and I find this problematic as Jackie’s life moves farther into the past and his life becomes one of a historical figure rather than just a baseball figure. His debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers will be 76 years old this year, and his number has been retired by all of Major League Baseball for a quarter of a century. It is time to write biographies of Jackie Robinson’s life with younger readers in mind so that they know who this important man was on and off of the baseball diamond.
Williams and Long craft this book with lots of photographs and primary based documents so that the book becomes meaningful for kids, rather than just a laundry list of events. I hear from kids on a daily basis why history is boring and that they do not want to study it and are only in class because the school needs them there. History is far from boring; history is happening. Newspaper clippings, photographs depicting all stages of Jackie’s life, question boxes designed to make kids think show the meticulousness of creating this book for kids who might be reading it for class or for a report. The documents and photos teaches about Jackie on their level so that they can come away with an appreciation for his place in history.
The volume touches on all the important aspects in Jackie’s life. Because it is a book for youth readers, each chapter is between seven and ten pages in length, including photographs. Kids with shorter attention spans will still be able to grasp this book because even key events might only take up three paragraphs and one newspaper clipping in print. The authors do not leave out anything down to Jackie’s political involvement during and after his playing field. What many adults may not know is that he was a civil rights activist before the term was coined and that he won the Spingarn Medal from the NAACP and gave a speech at the 1963 March on Washington. All the while these political events that would change the course of American history were unfolding, Jackie was on the front lines and encouraging other athletes and celebrities to do more. As heroes to many children and adults, it was all that an athlete could do to be political. Perhaps today’s athlete is more vocal due to Jackie’s participation sixty years ago. Kids who follow sports can relate to that anecdote as well as any.
Today there is a Jackie Robinson Museum in Manhattan. People from all walks of life are welcome to visit. This is is where Williams and Long found many of the source documents that are present in this book. Tomorrow I will attempt to teach Jackie Robinson’s participation in the civil rights movement in conjugation with Martin Luther King Jr to a group of middle school students who otherwise do not enjoy history class. By utilizing the pictures and source documents in the book, the students will see that history is happening and hopefully appreciate Jackie Robinson’s place in it, maybe not as much as I do but enough to see his merit as a key figure of the 20th century. Thank you to Yohuru Williams and Michael Long who have made Jackie Robinson’s extraordinary life accessible to 21st century kids.
⚾️ 5 stars ⚾️
October 2, 2022
Jack Roosevelt Robinson’s life and pursuits are captured beautifully in this Young Adult book. The story is well written with primary source documents and questions that challenge the reader to think. I appreciate the full picture of Mr. Robinson’s humanness including the context that shaped his experience and actions. This allows the reader to get a true sense of how heroic he was beyond the baseball achievements.
August 30, 2022
Richie’s Picks: CALL HIM JACK: THE STORY OF JACKIE ROBINSON, BLACK FREEDOM FIGHTER by Yohuru Williams and Michael G. Long, Farrar Straus & Giroux, September 2022, 240p., 978-0-3743-8995-6
“He was a sit-inner before the sit-ins, a freedom rider before the freedom rides.”
– Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., speaking about Jackie Robinson
“When Jack became a student at Cleveland Elementary, his friends stood in awe as they watched him tear up the baseball diamond, the football field, and the dodgeball court. Envious of his athletic skills, they offered him half their lunches if he would play on their side.
But his athleticism did little to protect him from the racist neighbors, and at the age of eight, he had a nasty encounter while he was sweeping the sidewalk.
Across the street was a white girl who was also sweeping. Her father was one of those who had loudly demanded that the Robinsons leave the neighborhood. Jack paid her no mind at first, but then she shouted, ‘Nigger! Nigger! Nigger!’
The words stung, and Jack fired back that she was ‘nothing but a cracker.’
Unfazed, the girl shot off a rhyme: ‘Soda cracker’s good to eat, nigger’s only good to beat.’
Hearing the commotion, her father burst through their front door, picked up a rock, and hurled it at Jack.
Jack found his own rock and threw a fastball right back.
The battle waged on until the man’s wife ran out of the house and scolded her husband for such immature behavior. As the man skulked back inside, Jack stood his ground, fully prepared to fight some more.”
You might know that Jackie Robinson was the first Black major leaguer in modern professional baseball. Did you also know that he staged impromptu sit-ins decades before the famous lunch counter sit-ins we all learn about? Did you know that he repeatedly stood his ground against movie theater ushers and bus drivers who repeatedly tried to “put him in his place” during the Jim Crow era? Did you know that he was also the first Black vice-president of a major US corporation?
Jackie Robinson made the most of his natural talents, his loving family, and his own competitiveness to become one of America’s most-celebrated athletes–in high school, in college, and as a pro. Then, after completing his storied career, he was as determined to change the country as a Civil Rights advocate as he had been to win the World Series.
CALL HIM JACK is a riveting biography written by a pair of respected and well-known professors who are experts on Jackie Robinson, and who played key roles in Ken Burns’s 2016 documentary on Robinson. This tale for tweens and teens never blindly lionizes its subject. The authors honestly depict Robinson’s shortcomings, such as being part of a teen gang, and not being a great student. (He eventually switched college majors to avoid required classes that he couldn’t satisfactorily complete.)
As the first Black ballplayer in MLB, Jackie Robinson had to suck it up. He had to do his job while consciously ignoring the countless players, managers, and spectators who called him the N- word and hurled other insults at him because of the color of his skin. It was the same abuse he'd endured as a kid, a teen, and as an officer in the military.
In retirement, Robinson used his star power to attract people to the Civil Rights movement and raise money for the struggle. In 1962, one of his first post-retirement actions was a successful fundraising campaign to rebuild three Black churches in Georgia that had been burned to the ground in retaliation for registering voters.
Jackie Robinson subsequently spoke and marched at the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Dr. King delivered his I Have a Dream speech. He became a regular presence at marches and protests, and was always ready to take on racists, continuing the path he’d started as an eight year-old.
“State lawmakers have introduced and passed an unprecedented wave of restrictive voting legislation since the 2020 election. This torrent has the potential to cause grievous harm at the polls. Similar to the conclusions reached in academic studies, recent news articles and reports written by voting rights experts as part of relevant litigation show how new restrictive voting laws make it disproportionately harder for voters of color and voters with disabilities to cast their ballots.”
– The Brennan Center for Justice, “The Impact of Restrictive Voting Legislation”
So why do you need this notable biography in your local elementary and middle school libraries? Because young people should know that Jackie Robinson was a far more interesting person than the first this-and-that, or a Hall of Famer with awesome stats.
Becoming a “first” is not a straightforward parade of triumphalism. It involves confronting painful conflict and difficulties. Unfortunately, today’s kids may be faced with conflict and difficulties of their own. Many states are still doing everything possible to interfere with voting rights, and law enforcement officers and other representatives of the law continue to abuse and murder minorities, both kids and adults.
As young people become aware of injustice, they often question the prospects in their own lives. It may be meaningful for some to understand the story of a man who faced and overcame daunting circumstances, this time depicted with subtlety and recognition of how complicated that was. These are important reasons for getting this engaging, award-worthy biography into the hands of young people.
Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/richiespicks/
https://twitter.com/richiespicks
richiepartington@gmail.com
“He was a sit-inner before the sit-ins, a freedom rider before the freedom rides.”
– Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., speaking about Jackie Robinson
“When Jack became a student at Cleveland Elementary, his friends stood in awe as they watched him tear up the baseball diamond, the football field, and the dodgeball court. Envious of his athletic skills, they offered him half their lunches if he would play on their side.
But his athleticism did little to protect him from the racist neighbors, and at the age of eight, he had a nasty encounter while he was sweeping the sidewalk.
Across the street was a white girl who was also sweeping. Her father was one of those who had loudly demanded that the Robinsons leave the neighborhood. Jack paid her no mind at first, but then she shouted, ‘Nigger! Nigger! Nigger!’
The words stung, and Jack fired back that she was ‘nothing but a cracker.’
Unfazed, the girl shot off a rhyme: ‘Soda cracker’s good to eat, nigger’s only good to beat.’
Hearing the commotion, her father burst through their front door, picked up a rock, and hurled it at Jack.
Jack found his own rock and threw a fastball right back.
The battle waged on until the man’s wife ran out of the house and scolded her husband for such immature behavior. As the man skulked back inside, Jack stood his ground, fully prepared to fight some more.”
You might know that Jackie Robinson was the first Black major leaguer in modern professional baseball. Did you also know that he staged impromptu sit-ins decades before the famous lunch counter sit-ins we all learn about? Did you know that he repeatedly stood his ground against movie theater ushers and bus drivers who repeatedly tried to “put him in his place” during the Jim Crow era? Did you know that he was also the first Black vice-president of a major US corporation?
Jackie Robinson made the most of his natural talents, his loving family, and his own competitiveness to become one of America’s most-celebrated athletes–in high school, in college, and as a pro. Then, after completing his storied career, he was as determined to change the country as a Civil Rights advocate as he had been to win the World Series.
CALL HIM JACK is a riveting biography written by a pair of respected and well-known professors who are experts on Jackie Robinson, and who played key roles in Ken Burns’s 2016 documentary on Robinson. This tale for tweens and teens never blindly lionizes its subject. The authors honestly depict Robinson’s shortcomings, such as being part of a teen gang, and not being a great student. (He eventually switched college majors to avoid required classes that he couldn’t satisfactorily complete.)
As the first Black ballplayer in MLB, Jackie Robinson had to suck it up. He had to do his job while consciously ignoring the countless players, managers, and spectators who called him the N- word and hurled other insults at him because of the color of his skin. It was the same abuse he'd endured as a kid, a teen, and as an officer in the military.
In retirement, Robinson used his star power to attract people to the Civil Rights movement and raise money for the struggle. In 1962, one of his first post-retirement actions was a successful fundraising campaign to rebuild three Black churches in Georgia that had been burned to the ground in retaliation for registering voters.
Jackie Robinson subsequently spoke and marched at the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Dr. King delivered his I Have a Dream speech. He became a regular presence at marches and protests, and was always ready to take on racists, continuing the path he’d started as an eight year-old.
“State lawmakers have introduced and passed an unprecedented wave of restrictive voting legislation since the 2020 election. This torrent has the potential to cause grievous harm at the polls. Similar to the conclusions reached in academic studies, recent news articles and reports written by voting rights experts as part of relevant litigation show how new restrictive voting laws make it disproportionately harder for voters of color and voters with disabilities to cast their ballots.”
– The Brennan Center for Justice, “The Impact of Restrictive Voting Legislation”
So why do you need this notable biography in your local elementary and middle school libraries? Because young people should know that Jackie Robinson was a far more interesting person than the first this-and-that, or a Hall of Famer with awesome stats.
Becoming a “first” is not a straightforward parade of triumphalism. It involves confronting painful conflict and difficulties. Unfortunately, today’s kids may be faced with conflict and difficulties of their own. Many states are still doing everything possible to interfere with voting rights, and law enforcement officers and other representatives of the law continue to abuse and murder minorities, both kids and adults.
As young people become aware of injustice, they often question the prospects in their own lives. It may be meaningful for some to understand the story of a man who faced and overcame daunting circumstances, this time depicted with subtlety and recognition of how complicated that was. These are important reasons for getting this engaging, award-worthy biography into the hands of young people.
Richie Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.pbworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/richiespicks/
https://twitter.com/richiespicks
richiepartington@gmail.com
September 22, 2023
I don’t normally log the books I read to my children at bedtime, but I was so impressed with this book that I felt compelled to review it. Williams and Long don’t just give middle grade readers an education on the life of Jackie Robinson, they use Robinson’s life as a lens through which to view an introduction to 20th century Black history. Sidebars feature background on major historical figures, movements, and events. Primary documents, mostly in the form of newspaper clippings and photographs, are presented. There are notes and bibliography. This is a compelling read, but also a crash course for young readers in what serious nonfiction looks like and how it’s presented- after reading “Call Him Jack,” one should be left with high expectations for what a biography should look like and include. While it doesn’t shy away from tough topics (primarily racism, of course), it also does not go out of its way to show Jack’s rougher edges- things like Jack’s campaigning for Nixon in 1960 and coming back from the off-season overweight due to eating issues don’t get fully left out but also don’t get deeply examined. What should be taken from the book by readers young and old about Jack Robinson is not simply that he was a man who was born a child of poverty and had to overcome deep racial hatred in order to integrate Major League Baseball, but that Jack was a lifelong fighter for civil rights and that his struggle for Black liberation began well before his baseball career and, despite his early death at the age of 53, he made more impact as a civil rights leader in the years following his retirement than he did during his brief career playing as an editorialist, fund raiser, march leader, and Black business leader.
February 15, 2024
A well told story of a great ball player. Surprised to find this on the LTRC list for 9th-12th grades. But it’s a great option for my kids.
October 19, 2024
SUPERB 🤗
April 13, 2023
Athlete. Advocate. Activist. Although Jack Robinson is best known for breaking the MLB (major league baseball) color barrier, he was so much more than that. He was JACK, not Jackie - a diminutive forced on him by whites. He excelled at many sports including football, long jump, tennis, and many more. In addition, he was passionate about equal rights for Blacks. He would not tolerate mistreatment or different treatment. While in his first year with the Brooklyn Dodgers, he had to work hard to keep his (righteous) anger in check; in his later years with the team, he became more vocal about the injustices brought against him and other Black players and Black people in general. After he retired from baseball he became even more active in his activism: marching, fundraising, speaking. He was able to use his fame and recognition to advance the cause.
Highly recommend this biography of such an inspiring and legendary American.
Highly recommend this biography of such an inspiring and legendary American.
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October 14, 2022
Jack Robinson, or Jackie Robinson how most people know him, was not just a gifted athlete but also a Black Freedom Fighter. Call Him Jack discusses what life was like for Jack growing up and the racism he experienced at every turn. That racism spilled into his life as an Army officer serving during World War II and in his professional sports career. The sheer audacity of the comments will leave you reeling and infuriating.
I appreciated learning a lot more about Jack Robinson the person versus Jackie Robinson the professional baseball player. That isn't to say his time as a professional in the MLB isn't worth of mention, it's that Jack Robinson was so much more and that needs to be remembered as well.
I received this book as part of a TLC Book Tour and Farrar, Straus and Giroux, a review was not required and these thoughts are my own.
I appreciated learning a lot more about Jack Robinson the person versus Jackie Robinson the professional baseball player. That isn't to say his time as a professional in the MLB isn't worth of mention, it's that Jack Robinson was so much more and that needs to be remembered as well.
I received this book as part of a TLC Book Tour and Farrar, Straus and Giroux, a review was not required and these thoughts are my own.
October 27, 2022
Appropriately written for young adults, this biography of Jackie Robinson is engaging and well-explained, with a good deal of a overall context surrounding the Civil Rights movement in which he participated. Language is strong when needed to show the racism he faced and the the F-word is used a couple times. Jack Robinson had a fire that is not hidden in this story, which depicts the way he attempted to take and use this fire to advance the rights of his people.
Read as a nomination in the non-fiction book award category as a panelist for Children's and Young Adult Bloggers' Literary Awards (Cybils Awards).
Read as a nomination in the non-fiction book award category as a panelist for Children's and Young Adult Bloggers' Literary Awards (Cybils Awards).
March 21, 2023
Another book that taught me a lot about something I only knew the surface. I had known who "Jackie Robinson" was, and I vaguely knew that he was chosen as someone who would control his temper for the first years and that later on he started objecting to bad treatment. And that he stole a lot of bases.
But now I know about all his civil rights work before and after, and his family history, his passion for freedom, his relationships, cooperation and arguments with Dr Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X, and his early death.
I started out reading, then found an audio so I doubled up, but the pictures make it worth having text version.
But now I know about all his civil rights work before and after, and his family history, his passion for freedom, his relationships, cooperation and arguments with Dr Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X, and his early death.
I started out reading, then found an audio so I doubled up, but the pictures make it worth having text version.
October 21, 2022
This is a great book showing the Jim Crow era throughout the U S. It would be a great bookgroup or class read for teens or tweens or adults. Lots to discuss and think about, with sidebar explanations to put it all in context.
I've always known of Jackie Robinson the baseball player, but never put myself in his shoes. Also, I was totally unaware of the whole of his life, beyond baseball.
Martin Luther King wrote that Jack Robinson had the right to speak his mind: "because... he underwent the trauma and the humiliation and the loneliness which comes from being a pilgrim walking the lonesome byways toward the high road of Freedom. He was a sit-inner before the sit-ins, a freedom fighter before the Freedom Rides."
I've always known of Jackie Robinson the baseball player, but never put myself in his shoes. Also, I was totally unaware of the whole of his life, beyond baseball.
Martin Luther King wrote that Jack Robinson had the right to speak his mind: "because... he underwent the trauma and the humiliation and the loneliness which comes from being a pilgrim walking the lonesome byways toward the high road of Freedom. He was a sit-inner before the sit-ins, a freedom fighter before the Freedom Rides."
October 28, 2022
Learn about Jackie Robinson, from his childhood through his baseball career and truly beyond. This gives a great view of all of his activism, his temper, his ability to curb his temper as needed to break barriers and his family life. I loved that the back matter shared some colorful tidbits that didn't make the book. The text boxes throughout added historical context for anyone who needed more on specific historical movements. They also served to ask readers bigger questions about the choices Robinson made in his life.
November 2, 2024
I loved what this book tried to do: to show more of Jack Robinson's life than his baseball days. It is strongest when it shows Robinson's experiences of racism before his baseball career as well as his involvement with the civil rights movement. However, while the bare bones and context of Jack's life were there, I didn't feel like Jack or his friends and family came to life. However, this middle grade biography, while not amazing, definitely fills a gap in library collections.
Review based on an eARC received through Edelweiss+.
Review based on an eARC received through Edelweiss+.
October 10, 2022
This exceptionally quick story seems brief but presents a full picture of Jack Robinson's life (and if I remember one things, it's Jack not Jackie that he used most of his life!) while providing plenty of primary source newspaper clippings and pictures of his family and life spanning his youth, collegiate in multiple sports, professional sports, and then how he used his voice after he retired for rights for Black people.
It's an intimate portrait but it also includes asides where the reader is asked important questions, forcing readers to think about how they've viewed history, what they've been taught, and how to think critically about the information presented, not only in the book, but in general. It's a strong biography for Robinson and shows his agility and strength playing multiple sports though he will always be remembered for baseball.
It's an intimate portrait but it also includes asides where the reader is asked important questions, forcing readers to think about how they've viewed history, what they've been taught, and how to think critically about the information presented, not only in the book, but in general. It's a strong biography for Robinson and shows his agility and strength playing multiple sports though he will always be remembered for baseball.
April 10, 2023
Great book for both sports fans and readers who want to learn more about the fight for equality for African Americans in this country. I didn't realize that Jack Robinson was so active in the Civil Rights Movement and learned a lot about his courage and commitment to that cause from reading this book.
October 9, 2022
Well-written biography about Jackie Robinson’s interesting life, which beautifully illuminates why he’s such a legend. Images are nicely scattered amongst the text to engage the reader. Excellent end notes.
January 13, 2023
Jackie Robinson is best known for the first Black Major League Baseball Player. But this barrier-breaking American hero was a lifelong, relentlessly proud fighter for Black justice and civil rights both on and off the field.
April 10, 2023
Essential reading
This book should convince everyone to see beyond the persona of "Jackie" created to put people at ease and learn about "Jack" the relentless fighter for civil rights.
This book should convince everyone to see beyond the persona of "Jackie" created to put people at ease and learn about "Jack" the relentless fighter for civil rights.
May 30, 2023
I was pleased to see a different type of biography abot Jack Robinson but I felt that the authors could have gone much further as the secondary title suggest that Jack Robinson was a black freedom fighter but it feels as though Williams and Long only really scratched the surface of Robinson's life.
August 26, 2023
To be historically accurate the author did a terrible job of explaining to the young audience of this book what Communism is and further how this anti-Communism gassed and tortured countless people, including children, in Vietnam.
September 10, 2023
I really enjoyed this book, primarily the way it was structured around the history of Jim Crow and the civil rights movement. I appreciated the context and additional information. I think this is a great read for teens or adults, baseball fan or not.
September 28, 2022
Interesting biography. A YA read for young sports fans.
October 27, 2022
Loved this read! It’s not just another book about baseball but rather includes more of the parts of Robinson’s life that isn’t normally emphasized. Excellent middle grade nonfiction!
November 5, 2022
Nice middle grade book that focuses on the before and after of what most people know about Jack Robinson (all that great baseball stuff).
February 29, 2024
eaudiobook
April 22, 2023
Good story about Jackie Robinson. I read 42 is Not Just a Number which talked more about his family. This book talked more about Jackie and his career.
July 21, 2025
A biography of Jackie “Jack” Robinson focusing on mostly on his time after baseball and his life fighting racism and discrimination.
This is a great resource and overview of Jack Robinson’s life. It talks about his childhood, his athletic giftedness in multiple sports, his addition to the major league, and finally his retirement life.
Like a surprise to no one Jack faced racism every step of the way. Some of the times he decided to fight back with words or fists and other times he chose to stay quiet. While in the major leagues he had to learn to walk the line between not being seen as “angry” (rightfully) and as a pushover.
This is a YA version of Jack’s story. It is very surface level, but it does use some of the harsh language Jack would have experienced. I learned way more than I knew about Jack, but I still feel like there is a ton more I could learn.
This is a great resource and overview of Jack Robinson’s life. It talks about his childhood, his athletic giftedness in multiple sports, his addition to the major league, and finally his retirement life.
Like a surprise to no one Jack faced racism every step of the way. Some of the times he decided to fight back with words or fists and other times he chose to stay quiet. While in the major leagues he had to learn to walk the line between not being seen as “angry” (rightfully) and as a pushover.
This is a YA version of Jack’s story. It is very surface level, but it does use some of the harsh language Jack would have experienced. I learned way more than I knew about Jack, but I still feel like there is a ton more I could learn.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews