Customer Reviews

The Youngest Hero

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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!

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.

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.

When you finish this book, you'll be searching the Internet to find out if the Youngest Hero was a real person, it's so real. The perfect book for young and old men that love the game of baseball. The author allows you to get into the thoughts of the characters and you become a part of their life. It's the best there ever was. If you like this one, check out author John R. Tunis for other real sports books you can't wait to pick up again to finish.

Since I reluctantly read Hometown Legend and was blown away, I've been looking at Jerry Jenkins' other books, and it's been fantastic. This is a wonderful book, and if you're a sports fan like me, you'll appreciate the incredible attention to detail and obvious sports knowledge Jerry has. However, if you're not a sports fan, like my wife, you'll still love it like she did because of the precious characters and terrific dialogue.

Do yourself a favor and buy this book!

I listened to this book on tape and was really drawn into the characters by the voices of Laurie O'Brien and Jack. I couldn't believe that Laurie was just ONE person being all those characters! What else has she done!?!? I was inspired by this story of one family's struggle to find itself through all the ups and downs of prison, divorce, relocation, age discrimination for the young Elgin, who wants to play baseball with more than all his heart. There's even a little romance in there for the single mom as she works to do more than survive & make her son's dream come true. I found the two reader's voices a little disconcerting as they traded off reading the story, at the beginning, but soon grew to appreciate their different characters and the varieties they brought to each one. I highly recommend this book for all ages. I loved listening to it in bed before I went to sleep. It gave me something to look forward to every evening. It also inspired me to concentrate more on my own sport activity and I did well, thinking of Elgin and his determination.

I purchased this for a young boy who loves baseball, and with this being baseball season, he was not so much interested in it as actually playing the game. So, I read it. It arrived in what I thought was a very timely manner and was in great shape. Thank you for the speedy arrival and for a great book. Very enjoyable and touching. I laughed out loud and got goose bumps, tears to the eyes, the whole 9 yards. Everything I have purchased from Amazon has been great, better than expected! Thanks Amazon for what I would say is better than average service!!!!

I received this book as a gift from my wife over 10 years ago when it was originally titled 'The Rookie', and it continues to be one of my all time favorites. I've read it over and over to my children through the years, and they are spellbound. I've been a serious baseball fan for most of my life, and although this is book is obviously fictitious, it always makes me wonder if given the perfect circumstances, there might some day be a real life Elgin Woodell. ;)

This was a fun book to read since it reminded me of some of the fun of being a kid playing ball. This book is about a 10-yr. old boy named Elgin and his love for baseball as well as his relationship with his parents who are divorced. His dad, who used to play ball, is in prison. Elgin has great talent and is so good at hitting that he is kicked out of little league because he's too good so he gets to play in higher leagues even though he's just a kid.

Another aspect of this book is to practice correctly and keep at it. Elgin practiced all the time! He played fastpitch in the alley or practiced with a pitching machine in the basement that he adjusted to throw really fast. Anyone interested in little league or baseball would probably like this book. I enjoyed it very much!

Karen Arlettaz Zemek, author of "My Funny Dad, Harry"

The first two-thirds of this book were wonderful, but there wasn't enough conflict and suspense and as the end approached there was nothing to resolve. The book ended in a straight, predictable, and grossly sensational fashion that left me feeling cheated.

The author let me down on this one.