The Jungle Baseball Game

The Jungle Baseball Game

Written by: Tom Paxton

Illustrated by: Karen Lee Schmidt

I chose this book to begin with for my second grade Block A buddy. She adores animals and I thought this book would suit her interests well. Unfortunately I didn't fall in love with the story. Because of this I decided not to share this particular book with my buddy. The words have a rhyming scheme to them, and in my opinion that often makes it hard to read for understanding. While reading I found myself simply keeping a rhythm using the words instead of comprehending what the plot of the story was.

Additionally, sheet music is available on the front and back inside covers of the book with the words of the story as the lyrics. The lesson present within the story is an important one: don't give up. The illustrations are nicely done. Each page appears to be in a picture frame/boarder. Dancing, baseball monkeys surround the outside of the picture frame.

The book is recommended for children 3+. Both the male and female gender are represented through the baseball teams players. This will allow both genders to relate with the story. I hesitate saying that, because a girl or boy may relate with a character of their opposite gender, however, more often than not children tend to drift themselves toward books more stereotypically geared toward their sex. I would recommend this book to my students as an individual read.