I will be booktalking this book to upper elementary students when I visit schools to invite them to participate in our public library's summer reading program.

Warrior on the Mound is the best in historical fiction. It doesn't feel dated and dry, but current and alive. The characters are wonderful, and readers will learn about the Jim Crow Era, the Negro Leagues, and trying to co-exist with others in a shared but separate world where you are guaranteed neither equality nor safety. Kids will be able to identify with the main character, and baseball lovers will find a lot to love!

I really enjoyed this book, told from the perspective of 12 year old Cato. An attempt to honor his dad on his birthday leads to various events that slowly escalate and creates tension between his own Ranger team and the white Marlins. Outside of Jackie Robinson’s story, I knew nothing about the history of blacks and baseball. It was interesting to learn about different players like Satchel Paige, the history of the Negro League, etc. The actions of the Red Shirts- those in the book and in real life- were so sad.

The year is 1935, and ten-year-old Cato has one dream: play professional baseball. While pitching for his small North Carolina town's team, he aspires to join a Negro League team like his late father before him. And when the opportunity arises to practice on a local field, the team jumps at it. There's just one problem: another team, an all-white team, plays there. And many of the members don't take kindly to Cato and his family and friends.

Despite the help of an unlikely family friend and the growing admiration of his son Trace, Cato and his friends find themselves fighting an uphill battle. A series of games played to increase goodwill in the community soon turns dangerous—even more so when Cato learns the truth of how his father died. Not everyone sees the Rangers' aspirations as "just a game," and fighting for their right to play baseball quickly turns into a fight for their lives.

This is not an easy or lighthearted read, but it is a very good one. Warrior on the Mound confronts the good and bad of the history of baseball: the many talented Black players who populate its history (with people and places bearing their names), as well as the challenges and dangers they faced. But for as much unpleasantness as it lays bare, this book also demonstrates its fair share of courage and compassion in the face of that unpleasantness. There are plenty of positive role models for young readers to look to and (hopefully) emulate, even in the book's darkest moments.

This had echos of Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry but baseball! I think it is important that black books by black authors are read. The characters in this book are likeable and the plot is straightforward. One of reoccurring problems in this book are that white and black people were not treated the same in the south and racism came in different forms, including a scene at the end where a cop waits for a white testimony in order to make an arrest.

Historical fiction with baseball is right up my alley. This book is set in the south, 1939. And we have kids who get in trouble for playing on the "white:" baseball field. Interesting and informative. Trigger warning for animal abuse, though.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

In 1930s North Carolina, Cato, and his friends care only about playing baseball in their local Black baseball league and growing up to join a Negro League team. Local kids plague them, also on a baseball team of their own, who chase them, taunt them, and threaten them. Tensions get higher and higher, and when the two teams play against each other, events escalate. Looming over all of this is the death of Cato’s own father, Moses, who was a gifted baseball player who played in the Negro Leagues but died mysteriously. Although this book is laden with weighty issues, there is still hope, family and neighborhood love, and people who choose to do the right thing.

I loved reading about the Negro Leagues and Black baseball during this period. I think that kids will want to read it and it would be a good book to use in a classroom setting as a novel study. Readers see how Cato comes of age, chooses right over vengeance, and grows into his leadership role, his father’s ghost by his side. I wish some of the dialogue wasn’t written in dialect. I have a real problem with stories that write out people’s accents, no matter if they’re Scottish, Southern, etc. and when I kept reading, “Yes suh,” I wanted to scream. I like for the words to just say what they’re saying - I will use dialect in my narration. That pet peeve aside, I loved this novel and I think it will be very popular with students, as it combines sports and historical fiction. There’s also lovely back matter which talks about famous Black players, discusses more reading material, and gives a timeline of Black Americans in baseball.

Great read blending sports and historical fiction. I liked how this book brought out racial issues in an honest way. I think this books would bring up wonderful discussions about race, discrimination, loss, and ultimately hope among young readers.

This historical fiction relates the story of a young boy who aspires to be a professional baseball player in the Midwest. He encounters racism and witnesses violence. Fairly graphic. This book would appeal to kids who like sports fiction and the historical backdrop provides context for the development of the Negro Baseball League. The relationship between the white farmer and the African American family did not appear to be realistic.

This had a really well done historical children's fiction novel, I enjoyed the use of baseball and that it showed the ugliness of racial tension. The characters were really well written and they worked in the time period. I was invested in this story and thought it was really well done. Sandra w. Headen has a great writing style that worked with the time-period and storywise. It left me wanting to read more. And I can't wait to read more from the author.

Warrior on the Mound is a gripping novel using baseball as both a connection and a point of contention in a rural Southern town during segregation. The author does a good job building in characters with a wide set of views and backgrounds, and the novel feels appropriately tense throughout, as it depicts several dangerous interractions. I felt keeping a secret from both the main character and the reader through the story detracted from deeper feelings and knowledge of what was happening, and some of the characters that could have had more emotional input in the story seemed oddly left out to me; namely Cato's younger sister, who had surely experienced as much grief as he did. A solid take on a difficult subject.

Warrior on the Mound is set in 1939 during the Jim Crow era in the south. Cato, whose dad played for the Kansas City Monarchs has died, but Cato wants to follow in his footsteps. Cato and his teammates get into trouble when they sneak over to the brand-new baseball field for the white kids, but a local storeowner sees them and now they are in trouble.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. I had to stop reading when the kitten was purposely tortured with a cigarette. I was not a fan of the writing anyway, and had to stop at this point.

If you have a passion for baseball and a love of baseball history and the historic players of the game, then this book is for you.

Sandra Headen weaves a story of race relations, strong family dynamics, and team concept into an historical fiction novel that is a must-read for anyone ages 12 and older.

Told through the experiences of 12-year-old Cato in 1935 North Carolina, this book addresses segregation, injustice, and the power of community. There are some haunting scenes from the past, and some of the more powerful text is found in the back matter, which includes an Author’s Note, historical background, biographical information, and more.

This middle grade/YA text provides many inlets for a reader, and the most intriguing was the information about the Negro League. The player connections in the text were believable and added a great touch to the story. I was instantly drawn into the scene at the ballfield and could imagine the emotions of meeting someone so famous and endearing to the fans (read the book to find out who it is!).

Recommended for lovers of baseball, sports, baseball history and would make a great classroom read to study race relations, segregation, and the pre-war South.

Thank you #NetGalley, #HolidayHouse, #Peachtree, #Pixel-Ink for the ARC. Looking forward to a March 5 publication date!

Note: I received this book as an advanced reader copy. I would like to thank NetGalley, Holiday House, and Sandra W. Headen for the opportunity. What follows is my unbiased review.

Warrior on the Mound is set in 1939, in the Jim Crow, pre-World War II, pre-Civil Rights south. It’s an important context to know as things are on the brink of changing, but much of the south is still mired in the racism that has existed since the Civil War. It’s also a terrific coming-of-age story of a child born into this world on the brink of turning into an adult.

Cato Jones lives in a small town outside of Wilmington, North Carolina. His dream is to one day play baseball for the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro League. It’s something of a family tradition. Cato’s father, Moses, played for them, and his uncle, Isaac, is currently playing for them. The town is strictly segregated, and his team plays on a poorly-kept field behind their one-room schoolhouse while there is a brand-new field for the white team in town.

Curiosity gets the better of the black boys one afternoon, and they find their way to the whites-only field and practice a bit there. They push their luck and someone spots them. Luke Blackburn is a local store owner and the one who built the field. Cato doesn’t know why, but his store is one the black families in town will go out of their way to bypass. His son, Trace, lies about the damage Cato and his team did to the field, and Cato must work off the damage at Luke’s store.

However, things are not as they seem. Cato’s mother died giving birth to his sister, Hope, and the two of them live with their grandparents. Moses also died, and Cato knows it was something bad, but no one will talk about it. Somehow, Luke was involved with Moses’ death. Cato is confused, then, when it is Luke who proposes a baseball game between the black and white teams.

Warrior on the Mound is written for middle school readers. However, as nearly the exact opposite of the audience it was written for, I loved it. It has heavy topics of racism and violence and the discrimination blacks who lived in the south suffered with. Cato grows in the days these events takes place. He learns that sometimes the better path is a non-confrontational one, and you can still get your point across. He learns that people are often much more than they seem on the surface, and sometimes you don’t know everything when you think you do.

There’s also plenty about race relations in the south at this time. Many of the adults want things to change, but things that have happened in the past have beat them down to the point that they just accept it. It the boys Cato’s age who will be changing things, and there are seeds planted in this story.

All of this is set against the brilliant backdrop of a love of baseball. Cato is a star pitcher, and likely would have gotten more attention had he been white. He dreams of meeting and playing alongside the famous Satchel Paige, while Trace admires Dizzy Dean and doesn’t think any black player could top him.

Anyone who loved baseball will like Warrior on the Mound. I think it does well showing what life was like in the Jim Crow south of the time. I felt the struggles Cato and his friends were going through and the characters were complex and well-rounded. I had some questions while reading, such as where the money for all the food talked about came from. Adults tend to analyze things more while kids tend to accept more at face value. This is a minor nit-pick, though in what is otherwise a terrific story.

This is a touching and insightful look at a young boy growing up at a time when segregation was prevalent. His dreams and ambitions revolve around being a professional baseball player like his father and older brother.

Cato and his siblings have lost both their parents, and Cato and his young sister Hope still live with their grandparents - although their brother Isaac is no longer living at home.

It is his passion for the game that leads Cato and his friends into going to check out the new playing ground nearby that has been provided for white players.

Their presence there subsequently ignites a racial firestorm. Ultimately, before the conflagration takes things to a place of no return, it is decided the conflict will be settled where it started - on the playing field!

But was there ever so much stake in a call game before..?

This is an absorbing story with relatable characters. It describes a slice of history that many in America still do not want to face up to: the institutionalized racism that proudly prevailed for so long in the United States. And whose legacy lives on, for example, in the necessity for a Black Lives Matter movement today. Worth a read.