The Youngest Hero [Hardcover]

Jerry B. Jenkins (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 3, 2002

In this emotional story of parental love, a single mother of a teenage baseball player who exhibits the batting eye of a professional athlete, tries to shield and protect her son from the world of over-zealous scouts, hard-nosed coaches, and money-hungry agents. Guided by his mother's firm and steadfast wisdom and his extraordinary talent, both mother and son make it to the major leagues. In the end, THE YOUNGEST HERO reveals that when it comes to finding your way in life, a God-fearing mother is more important than God-given talent.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Jenkins's goal in high school was to be a professional baseball player, so it's not surprising that the coauthor of the popular Left Behind series and numerous "as told to" baseball autobiographies would pen this light yarn of a young prodigy who makes it to the major leagues. Elgin Woodell comes by his talent honestly: his daddy, Neal, was once a major league prospect. But with Neal in the Alabama State Penitentiary, Elgin's mother, Miriam, is left to raise their 10-year-old son on her own, moving from Hattiesburg, Miss., to Chicago to escape the stigma of her divorce and her husband's bad reputation. Elgin hones his talent on the streets playing fast pitch and trying to fit into local leagues that are correct for his age group but not his talent. Success, however, is just around the corner. Fans of the Left Behind series will recognize Jenkins's trademark touches of humor, as well as his predisposition to be long on dialogue and short on characterization. There's a nice romance between Miriam and Lucas Harkness, the owner of Lucky's Secondhand Shop. Although Elgin's raw talent is believable for this type of tale, his precocious wisdom is unlikely. Like Hometown Legend, much of the book reads like it was made for the screen (and with Jenkins's new entertainment company transforming several of his novels to film, perhaps it was). Baseball fans will gladly stick with the story until the final inning, when 14-year-old Elgin steps up to the plate and achieves his dreams.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Jenkins follows his mainstream football story, Hometown Legend (2001), with a rewrite of his 1991 novel, The Rookie. It's the tale of a young baseball phenom, Elgin Woodell, who climbs out of poverty--bringing his saintly mother along with him--to become the greatest baseball player of all time. He redeems the failure of his alcoholic father, a baseball player who could have been great. Jenkins was a sportswriter before securing fame with the Left Behind series, and The Rookie is authentic and touching, not least because of its evocation of the perennially hapless Cubs. The Youngest Hero, however, is a rather mechanical rewrite of a novel that didn't require tinkering. Jenkins adds little to the story, and huge chunks of his narrative are the same. But he shifts his point of view from third person to first and expands the role of Elgin's mom until she becomes an archetypal, never-wavering, Christian tower of strength. The new novel seems like a publisher's trick, a quick way to capitalize on Jenkins' new fame, but the changes are extensive enough to warrant purchase. And because a mainstream film has now been released of Hometown Legend, it may be reasonable to expect a film out of this one as well. Trick or no trick, The Youngest Hero will be requested. John Mort
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Warner Faith; First Edition edition (April 3, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446529036
• ISBN-13: 978-0446529037
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #754,124 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dr. Jerry B. Jenkins, former vice president for publishing and currently writer-at-large for the Moody Bible Institute of Chicago, is the author of more than 160 books, including the 63,000,000-selling Left Behind series.

Also the former editor of Moody Magazine, Dr. Jenkins's writing has appeared in Time, Reader's Digest, Parade, Guideposts, and dozens of Christian periodicals. Jerry and Dr. Tim LaHaye were profiled in a May 24, 2004 cover story in Newsweek magazine entitled "The New Prophets of Revelation."

Jerry's non-fiction books include as-told-to biographies with Hank Aaron, Orel Hershiser, Walter Payton, Nolan Ryan, and many others.

Jenkins also assisted Dr. Billy Graham with his memoirs, Just As I Am, also a New York Times bestseller.

Jerry owns Jenkins Entertainment, a filmmaking company in Los Angeles, and also the Christian Writers Guild, which aims to train tomorrow's professional Christian writers and has nearly 2,000 members worldwide.

www.JerryJenkins.com
www.Jenkins-Entertainment.com
www.ChristianWritersGuild.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Homerun!, February 12, 2003

By 

Sisterchick "Sisterchick" (Minnesota) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Youngest Hero (Hardcover)

This book was excellent. I loved every single minute of it. Even though I am not a big sports fan, this book was engrossing with it's facinating detail to the game of baseball. It gave me a new appreciation of sports, and what it means to the people involved in it. The characters were precious, and I truly felt like I knew them. Several days later, I still remember them well. THAT's the sign of a great book!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Go ahead and laugh, July 5, 2008

By 

Daisydigger (Denver, CO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Youngest Hero (Hardcover)

I just finished it and cried throughout the book. I have been to one baseball game in 63 years, and only know the names of a few baseball greats, yet I loved this story. I have searched the internet. Can't find Elgin Woodell. I even went on ebay to see if I could locate one of his baseball cards. No Elgin Woodell. You know your great at writing when you convince your readers that a character in one of your novels is real. That's right, go ahead and laugh.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like Hometown Legend, This Book Shines, June 27, 2002

By 

Peter J. Celiberti - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Youngest Hero (Hardcover)

While Jerry Jenkins may best be known for co-authoring the "Left Behind" series books with Tim LeHaye, he has shown his knowledge of sports by writing the biographies of many sports greats, including Orel Hersheiser. In his two latest books, Jenkins deals with young football (Hometown Legend) and baseball (The Youngest Hero) players with an obvious love of both games.

The Youngest Hero is the fictional story of a boy named Elgin Woodell, the son of a former major-league hopeful turned convict because of a crime he committed while on a drinking binge. While Elgin's father is in jail, his mother must support herself and her son on a meager income, while doing everything she can to support his love for baseball. More importantly, though, she recognizes Elvis' incredible talent, and is determined not to let this talent become his ultimate downfall. She devotes all her energies to raising Elgin with a good set of values, while keeping those who wish to exploit her son at bay.

At the same time, Elgin's mom must deal with an unforgiving heart toward her former husband, who has hurt her immeasurably.

The Youngest Hero is a story that shows how success can come to those who work hard and strive for the best. It shows that true love involves sacrifice, and the importance of forgiveness. And whether or not you're a baseball fan, The Youngest Hero will touch your heart in a way that not many books can.

Read this book, enjoy it, and most of all, be prepared to be changed by it.