A Girl Named Dan (Picture Books)

by Dandi Daley Mackall (Author) Renee Graef (Illustrator)

A Girl Named Dan (Picture Books)
Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade
Series: Picture Books
Ten-year-old Dandi (affectionately called Dan by family and friends) lives and breathes baseball. She may not be a fence buster but she can hit 'em where they ain't in the neighborhood pickup games. The boys know she's a contender. And there's no bigger fan of the 1961 Kansas City A's. So when Charlie Finley, the A's new owner, announces an essay contest to get batboys, there's no doubt Dandi will enter the contest. Dandi not only enters the contest--her essay wins! However, her joy is short-lived when the contest officials enforce the For Boys Only rule. Long before the boundary-breaking ruling of Title IX, young women across the country used grit and determination to prove that barriers of gender have no place on a level playing field. Dandi Daley Mackall's true-life story gives voice and testament to the spirit of these young sports pioneers.
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School Library Journal

Gr 2-4 In this fictionalized picture-book account of an incident from Mackall's childhood, it is 1961 and Dandi's dreams center on baseball. She roots for her local pro team, the Kansas City A's, and she's a solid player who can get on base when it counts. She's bitterly frustrated when the boys ban her from their pick-up games because she's a girl. Then she hears about an essay-writing contest that the A's are holding; the winner will get to be batboy. Although the rules state "for boys only," Dandi enters and wins, only to be disqualified. Instead, the A's send her a consolation prize, a bat. She announces to the boys that she's batting, hits the ball out of sight, and walks away, purposely leaving the bat behind. She stops rooting for the A's, her passion for writing and baseball unabated, and her spirit strong and undaunted. Mackall seamlessly weaves a good deal of baseball trivia and slang into her tale, and Graef's folksy paintings add detail and character. Dandi is an engaging and sympathetic heroine, and her story will resonate with many readers."Marilyn Taniguchi, Beverly Hills Public Library, CA"

Copyright 2008 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781585363513
Lexile Measure
650
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Sleeping Bear Press
Publication date
May 01, 2008
Series
Picture Books
BISAC categories
JUV014000 - Juvenile Fiction | Girls & Women
JUV039120 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Prejudice & Racism
JUV032010 - Juvenile Fiction | Sports & Recreation | Baseball
Library of Congress categories
History
20th century
Baseball
Sex role
Missouri

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