Roberto & Me

Baseball Card Adventures #10

by Dan Gutman

Sometimes you can change history . . . and sometimes history can change you.

When Stosh travels into the past to meet Roberto Clemente, a legendary ballplayer and a beloved humanitarian, he's got only one goal: warning Roberto not to get on the doomed plane that will end his life in a terrible crash. In the sixties, Stosh meets free-spirited Sunrise, and together they travel across the country to a ball game that leaves them breathless—and face-to-face with Roberto. But when the time comes for Stosh to return to the future, he finds that the adventure has only just begun. . . .

Join Stosh and Sunrise on a journey that will take you into the past, from the excitement of Woodstock to a life-changing encounter with Roberto Clemente—and into a surprising future!

Genres: Sports, Baseball, Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Fiction, Adventure, Childrens

192 pages, Hardcover

First published February 14, 2010

About the author

The author of over 80 books in a little over a decade of writing, Dan Gutman has written on topics from computers to baseball. Beginning his freelance career as a nonfiction author dealing mostly with sports for adults and young readers, Gutman has concentrated on juvenile fiction since 1995. His most popular titles include the time-travel sports book Honus and Me and its sequels, and a clutch of baseball books, including The Green Monster from Left Field. From hopeful and very youthful presidential candidates to stunt men, nothing is off limits in Gutman's fertile imagination. As he noted on his author Web site, since writing his first novel, They Came from Centerfield, in 1994, he has been hooked on fiction. "It was fun to write, kids loved it, and I discovered how incredibly rewarding it is to take a blank page and turn it into a WORLD."

Gutman was born in New York City in 1955, but moved to Newark, New Jersey the following year and spent his youth there.

Reviews

[Tyler º_º · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was very good I liked how he actully travled to the future.

[Kyle Welty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has a lot of plot twists that makes you want to keep reading. I've read every book in this series and they are all amazing but this one is special. I'm not going to spoil it you'll just have to find out. I recommend this book because it's just an amazing book you will love it if your into time travel baseball baseball cards and the 60s. You will not regret reading this.

[Freddie Lopez · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book I finished reading is called Roberto and me a baseball card adventure by Dan gutman.Like most books in the series the main character Joe Stoshack goes back in time to try and save Roberto Clemente. Because of Joe's love of baseball, he wants to prevent Roberto from dying in the plane crash in 1972.His Spanish teacher has a candle lit for Roberto because she had a tumor in her back but her families was to poor to get the medication so Roberto Clemente donated money for her medication.This made Joe determined to save Roberto.Joe goes to 1959 when Roberto is in a game but people are by the gate were the players come out and this big guy beats up Joe because Joe alerted the guy.Robeto comes to joes aid and takes him to eat.Joe tells Robeto not to go on the plane so he won't die.

[Deacon Tom (Feeling Better) · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bad

I was completely shocked that this book had more to do with climate change than baseball.

Truly a foul ball by the author. Tricking kids into hypothetical situations in 2080 is very unprofessional.

Avoid this book!

[Zaid Ahmed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Joseph Stoshack, a boy who has the ability to time travel using baseball cards or a picture that has a date on it wants to save Roberto Clemente's life so that he can change history and can have a longer life trying to save people around the Americas and other places. So he decides to get a card from his friend also his coach Flip Valentini. But Flip does not have the card. So Stosh's dad has the card and decides to give it to him. Then will Stosh be able to meet Clemente and save his life?

The theme of the story is being compassionate to others and trying to make things better than they were before.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Roberto and me I would recommend this book to anyone likes time travel or likes baseball. To me so far it was the best one out of the series I've read so far. I was really hoping that Stosh would complete his mission even though I kind of had a feeling that he wouldn't complete his mission.

[David Rough · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars.
Book #9 of a baseball series by Dan Gutman has me hooked into reading all of them that I can find. Roberto Clemente was a hero of mine in the 1960s and early 1970s. Growing up in West Virginia, The Pirates from Pittsburgh were my favorite MLB team. I remember listening to the final game of the 1960 world series and going crazy with the game-ending home-run by Bill Maz.

This middle-grade novel about a little-leaguer, who can transport back to the past via old baseball cards, pulls my 70-year-old bones back to my childhood. I loved this particular story because of the integrity and altruistic character of #21 of the Pirates. Roberto was a star in and out of the uniform.

The novel has lots of action as well as some accurate history of baseball. I have found several other novels in this series and plan to read others to see if they measure up with this home run.

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

First I will say that I love Roberto Clemente, so the rating of the book has nothing to do with the subject. However, this book didn't have the magic and interaction the other books in this series contains. This book travels into a bleak future. It seems like there was too much of making a point than about the love of baseball.

How did this book find me? It is part of a baseball series I have enjoyed.

[#1 Brewers Fan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is really good and I think others should read it. It is about a boy with the power to go to the
time a baseball card is printed by holding it for about a minute. This boy uses his power to go back
in time to save Roberto Clemente from getting onto the plane that killed him. Later, the boy's grandson
who has the same power travels to his time to alert his grandfather.

[Will Plunkett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This YA-centered book, read by me, an older-than-a-young-adult person, surprised me. In reading about the "Baseball Card Adventure" series of books, I figured I knew how it'd go as an experienced reader and sports fan. But the shifts in expectations and plot were swift and abrupt, and what was covered in those years of time travel were deeper than I thought for such a book.

[Kristin R · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great series. Baseball and history as well as trying to help people or make the world better. Coincidentally finished this on New Years Eve, the anniversary of when Clemente died in a plane crash trying to help survivors of an earthquake.

[Nic Recene · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book because you learn about history and one of the most saddening death in history when roberto was on his way to puerto rico for a charity event.

[NIck Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read all of the other And Me books and I love all of them including this one.

[Myles Grady · Rating 5 out of 5]

Roberto and Me is a book about a boy named Joe who can time travel with baseball cards. This time Joe tries to save the life of legendary baseball player Roberto Clemente. When Roberto died he was on the way to Nicaragua delivering medicine to all the people. Joey finds a girl named sunshine when he time traveled and landed in Woodstock. And she helps Joey find Roberto and tell him not to get on the plane to save his life. They go on an adventure to find Roberto and warn him about the future.
This book was really good. I liked it a lot it had a lot of action and plot twists.I would rate this book a good 5 stars. I don’t normally enjoy Dan Gutman's books but this book I liked. If you liked this book there is a whole series of time traveling adventures.I would definitely think if you like action and sports books that have plot twists then I would be positive you will love and enjoy this book.

[Ayden]

I love how they go to the
Future

[Tripp · Rating 5 out of 5]

it is a great book and I love baseball and I can relate to joey for needing to get out of a slump and I did almost the same thing he did but It is an amazing book

[Brittney Wood]

Read this with my baseball loving 10 year old.

[Ari · Rating 4 out of 5]

love Roberto Clemente. I've never watched him play and yet I love him. I love the way his playing style is described (graceful, royal, etc.), I love his humility, I love that he broke down barriers for Latino players and most of all I love how much of a humanitarian he was. He is all around amazing and every time I read about his plane crash, my heart breaks. Thus, I was surprised that the main character of this book didn't know much about Clemente. He knew a little, but not about his great humanitarian works or how he died. I wonder if part of the reason I knew about Clemente already (I like baseball but I don't know much about statistics or the history) was due to my Latina heritage? Clemente is a huge inspiration to many Latino baseball players and I'm pretty sure the whole Latino community adores him. Regardless, every lover of baseball should know about him.

As a full disclosure, I was tempted to give this book a near-perfect rating because it was about Roberto Clemente. Obviously I didn't and that's because I felt there were some small issues with the book that added up to it not being as good as I hoped. My biggest complaint was at how little time was spent on Stosh interacting with Clemente. I wanted them to talk more and really get into the issues of the day and how Clemente felt about them. Instead, the book felt more like the author trying to explain all about Clemente in a few chapters, it didn't flow, it read more like a nonfiction book with a few random bits of dialogue thrown in. I also wasn't pleased with the future aspect. I won't give too much away, but I didn't enjoy it (i wanted more Clemente time!) and felt that it came off as very preachy.

With all that being said, I was able to see the connections the author was trying to make between Clemente and the future part (hint: it has to do with social justice), I just wish it hadn't resorted to scare tactics. I did like the constant action that occurs throughout the story. And really the series is a fun way to help kids learn not only about great baseball players, but also about the time period the players lived in. Stosh goes to Woodstock, watches Clemente play and does a host of other things that should give younger readers a better idea of what life was like in the '60s. It's not a very complex look, but it provides a good building block. If I had known nothing about the '60s or Clemente before reading this book, I would have wanted to learn more ASAP.

Roberto & Me was a story that I (unfairly) had high expectations for. Thus, I don't think I enjoyed it as much as I could have. Nevertheless, everyone needs to learn about Roberto Clemente (the Incredible Quote that I shared is the true definition of incredible. So very inspiring). The story is engaging and Stosh is starting to really notice girls, which is cute to read about (and I have no doubt younger guys and girls will be able to relate. I could even relate to some of his feelings! Which is a good sign). I also like that Stosh is maturing, learning more about responsibility, helping others and recognizing his talents. In his own words, "If you could do something that nobody else in the world could do, you would want to do it, right? What a waste it would be to have a special power like this and not use it." (pg. 18). The baseball statistics and history facts aren't too in depth to make the story tedious, instead they keep it interesting. I'm pretty sure you can start anywhere with this series

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dan Gutman's Baseball Card Adventure books make for great reading, especially for those in the target audience of ages 10-14. I have to believe that most boys still entertain dreams of playing in the Major Leagues, so these books serve as a great hook for introducing the joy of reading to even the most reluctant of young readers. Not only do these books allow the reader to learn more about some true legends of the game, they also offer mini-history lessons on the times in which those players played. In this case in particular, readers are also exposed to an extraordinary role model who played the game the way it was supposed to be played and also devoted his life to making the world a better place.

Roberto Clemente has been called baseball's last great hero. He was a great hitter and a truly exceptional outfielder who left an indelible mark in the record books. He also helped pave the way for Latin American players in the Major Leagues. Above all else, though, he was a great humanitarian, which is why baseball's highest honor for community service is named for him. His life came to a tragic end on December 31, 1972, when he was killed in a plane crash attempting to deliver much-needed aid to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.

After learning of a personal connection between his Spanish teacher and Roberto Clemente, Joseph "Stosh" Stoshack decides to go back in time and warn Clemente not to board the doomed flight. Stosh, you see, has the unique ability to travel through time by way of baseball cards. All he needs is to get his hands on a Clemente card, and he will be transported back to the year of the card. In this case, he ends up with more of an adventure than he bargained for when he is transported to Woodstock just in time to hear Jimi Hendrix's legendary performance. Hitching a ride with some hippies to Cincinnati, he learns about the anti-war movement and goes on his first date (with a girl who is rather hilariously clueless about the game of baseball) to see Clemente and the Pirates take on the Reds. But will he get a chance to meet Clemente? And can he convince # 21 not to board that fateful plane on New Year's Eve of 1972?

I really enjoyed reading this book, and I have to say I learned a lot about Roberto Clemente's life and legacy in the process. I have to admit that I was a little turned off when the author chose to introduce a wholly unrelated political agenda (complete with the standard scare tactics associated with it) toward the end of the story, but the rest of the book is too good for me to give it any less than five stars. I doubt that baseball cards are as integral a part of childhood these days as they were for me, but I have no doubt that many young boys - and more than a few young girls - will love this book and yearn to read more of the growing number of books in Gutman's Baseball Card Adventures series.

[Erica · Rating 3 out of 5]

What's wrong with this book? I've read a few of the other Baseball Card Adventures. Babe and Me is about Babe Ruth. Jackie and Me is about Jackie Robinson. So when I pick up a book called Roberto and Me, I expect it to be about Roberto Clemente.
No. He's in three whole scenes. For the rest of the book, we get to read about Stosh riding across the country in a hippie van with a girl named Sunrise. And that's the good part. I liked how he finally got a love interest.
I listened to this on audiobook. The Hippie Trek: Special Guest Star Roberto Clemente takes up the first two discs. Then in the last one, Stosh's great-grandson shows up. Plot switch time!
Stosh can only travel to a time period if he has a baseball card from that year. Up until now, he's never been able to visit the future. But apparently his time travel ability is genetic. This had the potential to be awesome. I've been waiting for something like this to happen since I read the first book. I wanted to see what Dan Gutman would make of the future.
Turns out, we get an apocalypse in the near future. Children wear ragged clothes. Fossil fuels are gone. Rising sea levels flooded Florida. Population has declined so much, they had to merge the Mets and Yankees to create the Mankees.
This is when Bernard, Stosh's great-grandson, hops on his soapbox. "Hello, Grandpa, welcome to my hometown. This my farm, this is the baseball park, and WE INTERRUPT THIS NOVEL TO INFORM YOU THAT POLAR BEARS ARE DYING IN THE ARCTIC OCEAN!"
Okay, I'll suspend my disbelief and accept that this apocalypse happens in eighty short years. I won't protest how Bernard knows the exact figures for the amount of fossil fuels burned in his great-grandpa's time. Do you know how many tons of coal were burned in 1914? I suppose he could've studied up on it. But there's one issue I can't wave away.
Bernard's friends are all shown in rags, implying that there are no more clothing factories. Okay, makes sense. They do have to conserve those fossil fuels. Except for baseball card factories. Those are important.
This reminds me of The Final Warning by James Patterson. A great series about kids with magical powers-until it got hijacked by global warming. It would make sense if there had been any mention of global warming in the nine books before this one. Too much tree saving, not enough Roberto.

[Kylee Copeland · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was called Roberto and Me by Dan Gutman. This book was about a boy named joey who can travel back in time using baseball cards. The genre of this book was historical non- fiction because it had facts about when a famous baseball player died in a plane crash in 1972. This boy named joey gets a note from his spanish teacher and it says he is flunking spanish class. He goes to her class the next day to make up some work. His spanish teacher is in a wheelchair because when she was very young she had spinal problems. Joey asks why she was like this and said she was in the hospital when she was just 2 months old! The spanish teacher tells joey that a famous baseball player named Roberto Clemente visited her.
Roberto Clemente was a very famous ball player. He died on December 31, 1972. Joey goes back in time to save Roberto. He tells him not to get on a plane going to Nicaragua after a deadly earthquake hits, and he is bringing supplies there.
The night Joey gets back from the year 1969 a boy appears in in his bedroom. The boys name is Bernard. He is from the year 2080. He tells joey that he is Joey's great grandson! Bernard has the ability to travel in time using baseball cards as well. He brings Joey to 2080 and Joey can't wait to see all the new cool things. Eventually the world ends up being lonely. Bernard tells joey that there are no cars, technology, and other cool things. He says there was a world war 3, and that half of the worlds population has wiped out. Bernard said that there were about 3 billion people left on this world. Do you want to know why. It is all because of humans burning fossil fuels. There are hurricanes every week, and that there is hardly any food left. When joey gets back home he convinces his mom to use less energy and to not burn anything! That us pretty much the story.
I rated this book a five out of five because it kept me on my feet and I couldn't put the book down! I recommend this book for anyone who likes adventure books or any type of sports books!

[Jonah Satyr · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read a book called Roberto and Me by Dan Gutman. The book is about a kid named Joe Stoshack, but he goes by Stosh. He has a special power that every time he hold a baseball card, he can go back to the year the card was manufactured. This time he wanted to save Roberto Clemente’s life before he got on a plane and died in 1972. He went to year 1969, three years before he died to warn him not to get on the plane.
One positive comment on the book is how I liked how a lot of the events in the book were true, and how they combined the events and H.O.F. baseball player Roberto Clemente with fake characters like Stosh and his friends. I also liked how the book got into detail describing the Pirates stadium, how Stosh was struggling in Spanish, and how Stosh went out to dinner with Roberto Clemente. These were all amazing ways to combine fiction with nonfiction and having interesting details. One negative comment is I thought the book was too fictional, and frankly a little bit cheesey. For instance how Stosh sent a $100 bill in the mail to his Spanish teacher, and his Spanish teacher miraculously didn’t have a wheelchair anymore. Another negative comment I have is how people like his mom, dad, and baseball coach know he has the power to go back in time, and take it a little bit too casually. If I were them I would be astonished, unlike them who were barely amazed.
All and all I would probably rate this a 4 star out of 5 star book because after every chapter you just want to keep reading to find out what’s going to happen next even though there are some flaws throughout the book. I would recommend this book for people who likes sports and know sports, especially baseball. If you are not interested in sports this book might not be for you. I myself however, am very interested in sports and definitely do not regret reading this book.

[Nick G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just read the book Roberto and Me. I finished reading it February 7th 2013. The book is wrote by Dan Gutman. The book is 180 pages long. I rated this book four stars because I really liked it. The best part is that in this book he gets to go to the future. Your going to have to read the book to find out who, why and how the person brings him to the future. He still ends up going to the past. He goes back in time to save Roberto Roberto Clemente. That is the basic information of the book Roberto and Me.

The book starts out with the main character Joe Stoshack. He has a bad grade in spanish class and has to get it up. So he decides to talk to his spanish teacher about extra credit. His spanish teacher is in a wheel chair and always keeps a lit candle on her desk. when he goes to talk to his teacher he asks her why she has the lit candle on the desk. She answered the question saying "I keep a lit candle on my desk because along time ago I had a friend, his name was Roberto Clemente. I was in the hospital because I had an infection in my spine. My family couldn't pay the medical bills. Roberto was going to fly on a plane to help me in the hospital by paying my medical bills because he was a very good baseball player in a big baseball league. When he was in the plain the plain crashed and he died. I never got my medical bills payed. That is why I'm in a wheel chair. I keep the lit candle on my desk as a memory of Roberto." In this book Joe Stoshack decides to back in time to save Roberto Clemente from getting on the plain. Your going to have to read the book to find out what he does in the past and who, how and why does somebody take him to the future.

[Robert · Rating 1 out of 5]

About 20 years ago, Honus & Me was published. At that time, I met Dan Gutman. He came to the school I taught at and worked with our students. I believe we had him twice. On my classroom bookshelves, I have several books autographed by him. I read Honus & Me as well as Jackie & Me. Honus was better, but both were okay.

It's been a while since I read anything by Gutman, although my students continue to read him. I always remark that he lives about 40 minutes from us.

I am in a reading challenge this summer. One of the categories is to read a New Jersey author. When I browsed Gutman's books, I saw Roberto & Me and thought it would be nice to continue the series. I grew up collecting baseball cards. Roberto Clemente was my favorite ballplayer. Why? Because he was my father's favorite player. My first game was a Pirates v. Phillies twi-light doubleheader. Clemente was stretching on the field before the game. I was there with my autograph book. I got Stargell's autograph and a few others. When I asked my favorite player for his, he refused. :( Grrr . . .

Well, the book started out all right. Joe traveled in time using a baseball card. His mission here was to warn Clemente not to get onto the plane that killed him on NE 1972. That was about half the book. It was all right.

The balance of the book was propaganda for climate change policies. Yup, Joe's great-grandson travels from 2080 to bring Joe to the future. No airplanes, plastic, etc. as they have run out of fuel. The plea is to travel back in time and enact changes in consumption so the future generations can thrive.

Blech! It is so pushy. Gutman's politics are well presented here. Again, blech! I won't return to this series.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Roberto & Me
Historical/Science Fiction
198 Pages

This book is about a boy, Joe Stoshack, who can travel through time by using baseball cards. He finds out about Clemente from his teacher. who Clemente was supposed to give money to, so that her infection-that now keeps her confined to a wheel chair-can be cured. Sadly Roberto died before he could, but Joe wants to change that. So he travels through time to 1969 and finds himself during a Jimi Hendrix concert. He travels to Cincinnati where Clemente is and tells him to not board the plane that causes his death. When Joe returns home he finds that Clemente did board the plane and died. But Joe is determined to help his teacher. So he travels back to 1969 and sends his teacher the hundred dollar bill that Roberto gave him. When he returns he finds out that she was cured because of his actions. He also goes forward in time when his great grandson comes and brings him to the future. He learns about the new rules and how bad the world is.

I liked this book because Roberto Clemente is one of my favorite baseball players. He was one of the best players on AND OFF the field. I recommend this to anyone that enjoys baseball or Clemente. I love reading this series because of the Sci-Fi plot and many twists.

[Karel MESSI ondra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stosh's Spanish teacher, Senorita Molina, uses a wheelchair. When Stosh meets with her to talk about how he can pull up his terrible grade, he takes advantage of the occasion to ask a question he's had for ages--why does she have a candle burning on her desk? Turns out, she keeps it in memory of Roberto Clemente, one of the most famous Puerto Rican baseball players of all time. Roberto was more than just a great ball player--he was also a dedicated humanitarian. And one of the things he planned to do was to send a Puerto Rican hospital the hundred dollars that would pay for the drugs that young Senorita Molina needed to cure her spinal infection. But Roberto died before he sent the money, when the plane he was taking to help earthquake victims in Nicaragua crashed.....


I liked how this book was not that fast of a read or to long of a read ,but it was a just perfect book for me cause i love sports and with out them i would be no body with out them. If you want to know if Stosh does make it back from his adventure and save Robertos life read the book!!!!!!!!

[Nick McCarty · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this book there are three main characters. They are Stosh, Flip, and Roberto. Stosh is a teenage boy that plays baseball for his local team. Flip is the coach of this team and also owns a baseball card store. His store sponsors the team and Flip is also a huge part of Stosh's life. Flip mentors him and is like a second father. One day the topic of some of the best players in baseball history. Flip mentions Roberto Clemente. Stosh has no clue who that is so decides to go back in time to investigate. He finds out why he has no clue who he is because Roberto died in a plane crash before his career was over. I really like this book because it shows the history of baseball that you don't always know about. I also like it because it is learning book and teaches you lessons. The only thing I don't like is that time travel thing, but it is no big deal. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves baseball like me.

[Matthew Hernandez · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think this book was not that good. It was not good because half the book was spent talking about hippies and Woodstock, and six or seven pages was actually about Roberto and his advice to Stosh. It was an pretty easy read. But the other half of the book was about burning fossil fuels and the polar ice caps melting and Florida being submerged. But the book was about Stosh going back in time to save Roberto, but goes to the wrong year and ends up in Woodstock. From there he must hitch a ride to Cinncinati with Peter, Wendy, and a girl named Sunrise. When they get to the stadium and witness an amazing game. Then when they meet Roberto he takes them to dinner and gives them good advice. Once Stosh gets to the present Roberto didn't listen to him and still died, but Stosh gets a visitor, his grandson from the future. Once in the year 2080 Stosh's grandson warns him about burning fossil fuels.
All in all I didn't like this book at all.

[Libby Ames · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stosh has the unique ability to travel through time using only a baseball card. He holds a card from the year he wants to visit, and suddenly he is there. In Roberto & Me, Stosh travels to 1969 to meet baseball star and humanitarian Roberto Clemente. His goal is to warn Roberto not to take the tragic plane flight that cut his life so short. However, Stosh soon learns changing the future is more difficult than he expected.

This book and the other baseball card adventure books are great for young sports enthusiasts. They include baseball facts, but also a glimpse of life in different time periods. The stories are written with enough variety and conflict that even non-baseball lovers can enjoy them. Roberto & Me was a success with my ten-year-old daughter who has never watched a game of baseball in her life.

[Landen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Roberto & Me, by Dan Gutman was a great book. This book was about a kid named Joe Stoshack who can travel through time with baseball cards. In this book he goes through time with a Roberto Clemente card. The purpose of this is to go back in time and save Roberto from getting on a plain that will kill him by dropping. Read this book to find out more about the crazy and fun events Joe goes through to save Roberto's life.

I personally really liked this book it was full of adventure and mystery. One thing that I really like this book was when Joe Stoshack got to me Roberto Clemente. This book always kept me wanting to read more. I really liked this book.

I would recommend this book to people who like adventure, comedy, and action, also sci-fi. If you like any of these topics you will love this book. Please read this I liked it and I am sure you will to.