Customer Reviews

A Strong Right Arm: The Story of Mamie "Peanut" Johnson

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

What a great book !! Michelle Green does a wonderful job telling the story of Mamie Johnson, Negro league pitcher, and the first woman to ever pitch during the regular season for a men's team. Johnson is a true American hero. This is a little known part of our history that the author vividly brings to life. A Strong Right Arm tells an inspiring story for everyone, baseball fan and non-fan alike.

"Do you have a dream? If you don't, maybe my story will get you started working on one. If you do, darling, you're already halfway to making it come true." Mamie Johnson's story is one that many will not be familiar with but one that leaves you feeling like you have met a new friend. This is a would be a great book for children between the grades 3-5 and are sports fans. But reading about Mamie's desire to achieve the goals she has had throughout her life is inspirational for any age. This is a great read for anyone looking for a story of courage and determination.

Mamie recounts her dream of playing baseball. Growing up in the 1930's and 40's was especially difficult for African American females, especially ones who loved baseball. But Mamie had a deep love for baseball and the determination to do "what she had been made to do."

Mamie takes us on her journey which began with the Police Athletic League when she was in elementary school giving her her first chance to play with the boys. Like many times after this, Mamie was able to leave people speechless with her ability to play baseball for a woman or a man. Then two years after graduating from high school in 1953, Mamie had her chance at the minors.

Standing at only 5'2" and 92 pounds, Mamie earned her spot pitching for the Indianapolis Clowns, a team in the Negro League. Mamie was one of only three women to every play in the Negro League. Before her baseball career came to an end, Mamie earned the name "Peanut" while playing in the Negro World Series for her image of being "a peanut of a woman in a man's game" as one mouthy fan put it.

Mamie's life story represents the power of a dream. You are never too young to begin dreaming and setting goals for your life. While reading this book, you are going to be amazed at the talent and the desire to stop at nothing. After reading the book, you will be encouraged from a lady who knows what it means to go up against the odds. If you can dream it, it's possible. Take it from Mamie "Peanut" Johnson...she knows. And at 66, she still hasn't stopped dreaming.

I believe this is a great book for young girls and also die hard baseball fans. It gives the wonderful message that if you really want to do something deep down in your heart, you can do it. Mamie Johnson proved this by being only one of three women ever in the Negro League. All througout her life she overcame both the fact of being an African American and a girl. She proved to everyone that she deserved a her position as a pitcher on the team. This book not only discuses the challenges of being a woman playing a man's game, but it also discuses the issue of segregation in the 1940's and 1950's. She discusses the problems the Negro League had to endure when playing games in the south, along with the the problems players like Jackie Robinson encountered in the major leagues as the first African American baseball player to cross the color barrier and play on a white major league team. Besides being a great inspirational story about a girl who defeated the odds and followed her dreams, it is also a great read because it describes one of the hidden and unacknowledged aspects in the history of baseball.

Green presents the fascinating story of Mamie "Peanut" Johnson, one of only three female professional baseball players. Raised in the Deep South, Johnson had a deep love of baseball early on and wanted to play the game, although she had two strikes against her: she was female and she was African American. Green describes Johnson's efforts to challenge the boundaries built around her because or her race and gender, and recounts both victories and defeats in the face of overt racism and sexism. Johnson's biggest break came in 1953, when she was signed by the Indianapolis Clowns in baseball's Negro Leagues. With the color barrier broken by Jackie Robinson, many players from the Negro Leagues had moved on to the Major League, leaving the owners of the Clowns desperate to sign new talent. Johnson played for the team until 1955. The book concludes with Johnson's present-day passion to keep people conscious of the Negro Leagues and their role in baseball's history.

Although Green's first-person narration in the character of Mamie Johnson is confusing at first, the story of Johnson's life is compelling. The reader cannot help but admire Johnson. The vivid portrayal of the Negro Leagues and the prejudices of the day make this a great selection for Black History Month assignments, and Johnson's role as one of only three female pro baseball players makes this suitable for Women's History Month as well. However, it will be a shame if those commemorations are the only occasions when this book is read. The book includes an introduction by Johnson herself, who recounts how the author discovered her and her story; there are also a list of additional resources and a note about the "They Played Baseball" foundation.

I have read hundreds of books about baseball in my life, including many about the Negro Leagues. However, until I read this book I was unaware of the story of Peanut Johnson, a female that pitched professionally on the male teams. Even more significantly, she was not simply a gate attraction; she was a solid player with an excellent record, both on the mound and at the plate. She had a 33-9 won/loss record and a batting average of .273.
This is a book that should be read by all young women, the difficulties that Mamie Richardson overcame were incredible; being black she had to suffer all the indignities that it meant back in the time of segregation and being a female in a male business made it even harder. Yet, once she was able to show that she had the right stuff, she was accepted as a player by all sides once they crossed the chalk stripes. Although there is no way to prove this it seems reasonable to believe that the fact that she was black made it easier for Mamie to crack the (black) major leagues. Their experiences with feeling the bigotry no doubt made it easier for the black players to empathize with Mamie's troubles and it seems more likely that there would have been greater opposition to a female player in the (white) major leagues. As evidence, I cite the to date failed attempts of women to be accepted as umpires in professional baseball.
This book will inspire young women to realize that a hard-nosed desire to succeed and a willingness to work their tales off is enough to enable them to shatter whatever barrier they may encounter. If it is read as a class project with some explanation of the cultural context, that message will be even more powerful.

This book I am reviewing is A Strong Right Arm. by Michelle Y. Green. I believe this book deserves five stars because it tells everything about Peanut Johnson and his struggles to play in the Major Leagues. This book is about one of the first African American baseball players to play baseball in 1948. The problem in the story is that the M.L.B won't let him play because the color of his skin. But after many protests and the fact that they already let Jackie Robinson play, they let him play. He was really excited to play. I would recommend this book because of its really good if you like baseball. I think this book would be good for ages 9-12 because of the details and its vocabulary.

This book I am reviewing is A Strong Right Arm. by Michelle Y. Green. I believe this book deserves a five star because it tells everything about Peanut Johnson and his struggles to play in the Major Leagues. This book is about one of the first African American baseball players to play baseball in 1948. The problem in the story is that the M.L.B wont let him play because the color of his skin. But after many protests and the fact that they already let Jackie Robinson play. He was really excited to play. I would recommend this book because of its really good if you like baseball. I think this book would be good for ages 9-12 because of the details and its vocabulary.

A Strong Right Arm is a great book for discrimination and black history month. The author Michelle Y Green also puts a lot of good voice in this book. This book is about discrimination on Mamie "Peanut" Johnson. This book keeps you feeling like you're in a baseball game. This book isn't old Mamie is, though it probably took place in between 1940's- 1950's or something like that. Mamie is a great star she is actually better than people estimate her for. Thank you!

You don't have to like baseball to read "A Strong Right Arm". This book is not just about baseball. This book is about what happened in the life of Mamie "Peanut" Johnson. When she played baseball it was hard for her at that time because she was Black and a woman. During the time of Segregation, Black people couldn't play baseball in the majors so they played for the Negro League. Mamie followed her dream and became one of the first women to play baseball on a men's team. What this book is trying to tell you is to never give up and to always follow your dreams.

This book was about a girl that always dreamt of becoming a baseball player. Her dream was to play on a national baseball team. During Segregation, Mamie "Peanut" Johnson couldn't use the water fountains or bathrooms because she was Black. She always had to go through back doors but she still never gave up on her dream. I thought this was very cruel for Black people because they should be treated the same.
In the book, Mamie Johnson said, " Thanks to Jackie Robinson I was one step closer to the dream." But thanks to Mamie Johnson, I learned to never give up on my dreams. Even if your Black or White you can still accomplish your dreams.