We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball (Coretta Scott King Author Award Winner)

Winner of the Coretta Scott King Author Award and Robert F. Siebert Award

In this New York Times bestselling classic, Caldecott Medal-winning artist Kadir Nelson tells the incredible story of baseball's unsung heroes -- perfect for celebrating the centennial anniversary of the Negro Leagues!

Featuring nearly fifty iconic oil paintings and a dramatic double-page fold-out, an award-winning narrative, a gorgeous design and rich backmatter, We Are the Ship is a sumptuous, oversize volume for all ages that no baseball fan should be without. Using an inviting first-person voice, Kadir Nelson shares the engaging story of Negro League baseball from its beginnings in the 1920s through its evolution, until after Jackie Robinson crossed over to the majors in 1947.

The story of Negro League baseball is the story of gifted athletes and determined owners, of racial discrimination and international sportsmanship, of fortunes won and lost; of triumphs and defeats on and off the field. It is a perfect mirror for the social and political history of black America in the first half of the twentieth century. But most of all, the story of the Negro Leagues is about hundreds of unsung heroes who overcame segregation, hatred, terrible conditions, and low pay to do one thing they loved more than anything else in the world: play ball.


Author: Kadir Nelson
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 01/08/2008
Pages: 96
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.92lbs
Size: 11.10h x 11.30w x 0.60d
ISBN: 9780786808328
Audience: Ages 4-8

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 5.9
Point Value: 3
Interest Level: Middle Grade
Quiz #/Name: 119912 / We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball


Award: Capitol Choices: Noteworthy Books for Children and Teens - Recommended
Award: Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Award - Nominee
Award: Cybils - Finalist
Award: Orbis Pictus Award - Honor Book
Award: Bluebonnet Awards - Nominee
Award: Coretta Scott King Award - Winner
Award: Coretta Scott King Award - Honor Book
Award: Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award - Winner
Award: Beehive Awards - Nominee


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Review - Children 12/01/2007 pg. 1249
School Library Journal 01/01/2008 pg. 145
Publishers Weekly 01/07/2008 pg. 56
Entertainment Weekly 01/25/2008 pg. 51
Booklist 02/01/2008 pg. 50
Essence 04/01/2008 pg. 84
Voice of Youth Advocates 04/01/2008 pg. 78 - Recommended - Hard To Beat
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 04/01/2008 pg. 347 - Recommended
Horn Book Magazine 05/01/2008 pg. 338
New York Times Book Review 06/15/2008 pg. 14
New York Times Book Review 06/22/2008 pg. 18
Multicultural Review 09/01/2008 pg. 81
Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/2008 - Outstanding, Noteworthy In Style
Publishers Weekly Best Books 11/03/2008 pg. 34
Kirkus Best Children's Books 11/15/2008 pg. 17
Hornbook Guide to Children 10/01/2008 pg. 440 - Outstanding, Noteworthy In Style
SLJ's Best Books 12/01/2008 pg. 37
Booklist Ed Choice Youth 01/01/2009 pg. 15
ALA Notable Children's Books 03/15/2009 pg. 25

About the Author
Kadir Nelson is the Caldecott Medal-winning artist of The Undefeated and a two-time Caldecott Honor recipient for Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford and Henry's Freedom Box by Ellen Levine. Among his numerous other awards are three NAACP Image Awards, two Coretta Scott King Author Awards, and three Coretta Scott King Illustrator Awards. His work has appeared in many publications including The New York Times, Sports Illustrated, and The New Yorker, and his paintings are in the private and public permanent collections of notable institutions across the country, including the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery and National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington D.C.; The National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown; the International Olympic Committee, and the US House of Representatives. Kadir lives with his wife is Southern California, and invites you to visit him at www.kadirnelson.com.