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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Call It What You Will, September 28, 2002
In this third book of the time travel series, young Joe Stoshack touches Babe Ruth's 1932 baseball card, and journeys back to Wrigley Field in 1932. His goal is to see whether Ruth really did "call his shot," that is, point to the outfield stands just prior to hitting a home run there. Joe's angry, divorced, recently laid-off father sees the trip as a money-making opportunity (by betting on know outcomes, accruing 70 years of interest, and obtaining Ruth-autographed baseballs to sell when they return to the present). This well-written book will appeal to all baseball fans, especially its audience of kids around 7 to 12 years. Gutman obviously loves the game and its lore, and he vividly recreates 1932 Chicago. It's a very good history as well as sports book, as Gutman describes (aided by newspaper clippings and photos) such topics as segregation, the Depression, and the arrival of German Fascism. At times, Gutman is a little too sentimental, especially when describing the eventual (and predictable) family rapprochement, and there's a somewhat simplistic nod to the Holocaust. The main appeal is its depiction of early baseball and the larger-than-life character of the Babe. Although Gutman exaggerates some of Ruth's grandiosity (which the author points out in an afterward), most of the book is factual. Gutman's researched his subject with sources such as the Society for American Baseball Research and the Babe Ruth Birthplace and Baseball Center. There's also a terrific section featuring contemporaries' opinions on the called shot, and a 2-page summary of Ruth's batting and pitching stats. These are inspired ideas, that, again, show Gutman's skillful weaving of fiction and fact. This book offers much more than the usual sports fiction for kids. The family dynamics, the historical references, and the awesome presence of the Babe, Lou Gerhrig and other Hall of Famers are a winning combination.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Baseball Hit!, May 8, 2003
A Kid's Review
Baseball fans here comes a new hit! It's called Babe and Me and it's got baseball, time-travel, and mystery all rolled into one. This novel is about a boy named Joe Stoshack and his Dad. They live in Louisville, Kentucky in the 1990s. This pair are big Babe Ruth fans, and like most other fans, they are DYING to know if he did call his famous home run on October 1, 1932. Unlike others, they have a secret. Joe can travel to any time on a baseball card by holding the card for 30 seconds! So they travel back to the Depression and watch the famous game. This novel has a moral too. Joe learns tht behind the glory, Babe's life isn't perfect like you'd think it would be. He has troubles like any average person. So if you like baseball, fantasy, or even history, read Babe and Me. It's a novel most baseball fans won't want to miss.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Joe Stoshack checks out the Babe's called shot in 1932, August 18, 2002
The idea of traveling back in time to meet Babe Ruth is certainly a neat idea, especially if the goal is to find out whether the Babe really did call his shot in Game 3 of the 1932 World Series against the cubs. Author Dan Gutman does work into the fuzzy home movie someone found a few years ago of Ruth at the plate gesturing (apparently towards the Cubs dugout on the third base side rather than to the centerfield bleachers), but that does not take away from the fun. "Babe & Me" is the fourth of Gutman's Baseball Card Adventures involving Joe Stoshack, who has discovered that when he holds an old baseball card in his hand he can travel back in time. This first happened with the infamous 1909 T-206 Honus Wagner card, the most valuable baseball card in the world. Joe has also gone back to visit Jackie Robinson and Shoeless Joe Jackson. However, what proves to be interesting about this book is that Gutman provides some interesting layers. Joe's parents are divorced and when his father loses his job and wants to take back the 1932 Babe Ruth card he gave his son, Joe comes up with the idea of going back to 1932 and picking up some cards to bring back and make money. Joe's father will be going back as well and has in mind pretty much every scheme you could imagine involving time travel to 1932 to visit Babe Ruth. But this book is about more than baseball, because 1932 is the height of the Great Depression, Franklin Roosevelt is running for president, and Germany is about to make Adolf Hitler chancellor. Gutman takes pains to get both the period and the personality of Babe Ruth right. In both regards, he does a fine job and the issues that exist between Joe and his father also make this more than just some cute time travel story. In fact, the only thing that seems to be missing from the main event is that the Babe and the other Yankees were upset that former teammate Mark Koenig was getting a raw deal from the Cubs regarding his World Series share. If I remember correctly, that was the main reason that Babe and the Cubs were going back and forth during the first half of that game on October 1, 1932. Did Babe Ruth call the shot or not? Well, if you have ever seen "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" then you know what the newspaper editor said about what happens when truth contradicts legend. Gutman covers all the bases by including a section at the end of his book that includes quotes from 20 people who were there (including Koenig) as to what they think happened. "Babe & Me" is an entertaining and thoughtful book, which is going to teach kids as much about the times in 1932 as it will about the Babe and his called shot.
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