Henry Aaron's Dream

Reviewed by: Jill O'Connor - North Yarmouth Academy, Yarmouth, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: June 1, 2015

Review

A 2015 reissue of the 2010 picture book, this biography is served well by this format for emergent readers.Tavares's illustrations are stunning, capturing Aaron's expressions with great clarity, and the story is well-told. The very first page took my breath away. Tavares focuses on Aaron's ambition to play major league baseball and his struggles to get there. The difficulty Aaron faced cannot be overstated, but since this book is for younger readers, Tavares mentions it without going into great detail, which gives it a slightly glossed over feeling. His author's note about the challenges faced by black players during this time period is welcome and necessary. The message of never giving up on your dream will resonate with young readers and the factual retelling, along with all of the wonderful detail in the illustrations make this an easy purchase for any library.

Overall Book Score: very good