Learning | Excoriate

A recent online headline caught the attention of a few of us at the library. It referred to a professional baseball player being "excoriated" for training for a position he no longer plays.  Never mind the controversy about the player's motives for training; it just seemed like an unnecessarily big word for a sports story headline.

Excoriate. From Richard King's photostream on Flickr.com.
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Excoriate comes from the Latin word excoriatus,  which in turn is derived from the prefix ex- (meaning out or from,) and the Latin word corium (meaning skin or hide.) Both excoriatus and excoriate mean to flay, or strip off the skin or hide. In the eighteenth century, the word started to be used figuratively, meaning to censure or denounce. 


So why didn't the news agency use a shorter word like censure or denounce? I don't  have a good answer for that. Journalists used to try to write news stories that could be read at a sixth grade level.  Perhaps that reporter and editor did not know about that practice, or didn't care.


A search for excoriate in our Shiny New catalog found no results. Instead, I'll leave you with a list of books about that controversial baseball player.

4 Kids | Let's Play Ball

It's baseball time again -- loud applause here, please -- and so for you dear readers who share my love of this sport, let's take a moment to explore what might be an unknown part of our beloved sport's history.

But first, a little explanation: many of you may be hearing things like "critical thinking," "common core," and "informational text" in school these days. There are lots of changes going on in terms of what your teachers are teaching. But the great news is that non-fiction is getting some long overdue appreciation. So every week I'll be sharing non-fiction books with you. That's right: Non-Fiction! And I promise to share really great stuff. Informational stuff that's told in such a great way you'll think you're reading fiction! But you'll actually be learning something too. Trust me: this is going to be fun!

Back to baseball.

I just read Barbed Wire Baseball by Marissa Moss and Yuko Shimizu. It's a short book that tells the story of Kenichi "Zeni" Zenimura. Zeni loved baseball. And he was really good at it. He played in the Fresno Nisei League and the Fresno Twilight League, and in fact, when the New York Yankees came to Fresno to play an exhibition game, Zeni was one of a few players asked to play with them! There's even a picture of Zeni standing with baseball greats Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig.

But here's where the story takes a sad turn: When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941, 120,000 Japanese Americans living in the United States were sent to internment camps (think prison, not fun camp) because they were considered "possible spies." Zeni and his family were sent to just such a camp in Gila River, Arizona. It was a dry desert.

Even in these dire circumstances, Zeni did not lose his love of baseball. He decided to build a baseball field right there in the desert! Grass, bleachers, and chalk lines made out of flour -- he did it! And the first game played there was watched by 6,000 people!

It's no wonder that Zeni is considered the father of Japanese American baseball. Amazing what one person can accomplish, don't you think?

This is a non-fiction book, by the way. It reminds me of another great book on the same subject: Bat 6 by Virginia Euwer Wolfe. Although Wolfe's book is fiction, its story of girls' softball teams in Oregon in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor and Japanese-Americans being sent to internment camps is very compelling.

I always look for a lesson whenever I read a book -- something I can take and apply in my everyday life.

I have a copy of Bat 6 autographed by the author. Her words: Fair play for (and from) all of us!

Play ball! And happy reading!

Teens Only | Baseball 101

I have this younger sister who is totally cool. Aside from the coolness factor, we are a lot alike. We love music, though our musical tastes are admittedly different: think heavy metal vs. classical. We love reading and often talk about books. We value family big time. We think it's important to treat others with kindness.

But there is one area we are so totally opposite that I can't believe we are related. Sports. And right now, that means baseball.

Me? I watch almost every single Giants game unless it's a day game and I'm working. I root for my team no matter the standings.

Her? Not so much. She will often call and ask me what I'm doing. I'll say, "watching the Giants." There will be a little silence, and then she'll ask, honestly, "is that basketball?" I'm serious.

But lately a change has come over my sister. It started with a text from her a few weeks back: "Great game."

Then a phone call a few days later: "Buster's home run was great."

And then one Sunday afternoon she was visiting while I was watching a game. She asked, "so what do those numbers mean in that little box up there?" I started explaining baseball to her. Baseball 101, if you will.

I've taught her a lot, but I know there's still quite a bit she (and I, probably) could learn about America's pasttime. So I think I'll check out a good (but easy) book all about baseball: Play by Play Baseball by Don Geng. Even though this book is a tad bit old, it has great information that is still helpful for the beginning baseball fan. A glossary section at the end entitled "Baseball Talk" explains a lot of baseball terminology. For example, a balk: An illegal motion by the pitcher when there is at least one runner on base. If the pitcher is called for a balk, the runner or runners advance one base.   

It's really amazing how much information is contained in the library. Now I'm all ready to teach my sister everything she could ever want to know about baseball!

And if you're already a fan like me, there are some great teen fiction books celebrating baseball:

John Feinstein's Change-Up: Mystery at the World Series tells the story of sports journalists who interview the hot new pitcher in the series, and discover some major discrepancies in his life story. There's lots of baseball trivia, and cameo appearances by many baseball legends. A fun and exciting read!

I just read the blurbs about this next one and can't wait to check it out and read it tonight: Matt de la Pena's Mexican Whiteboy. I've always liked this author, and this book has every plot element I like: coming of age, family, searching for identity, and baseball! 

Happy Reading!

 
 

4 Children | Batter Up

It's October and that means baseball playoffs and the World Series. If you're a baseball fan like me, here are some great books you've got to check out:

Heat by Mike Lupica is the story of pitching ace Michael Arroyo who has been banned from Little League because rival coaches don't believe he is only 12 years old. He's also an orphan, so he doesn't have any parents to prove his age. All he wants is to be able to pitch in the Little League World Series.  This book will grab you; you'll have to read it to find out what happens!

If you like time travel books, you don't want to miss Dan Gutman's Baseball Card Adventures. In Shoeless Joe and Me, young Joe Stoshack travels back to 1919 and meets Shoeless Joe Jackson. Young Joe travels back in time to try to change the infamous Black Sox Scandal. Can he really change history? Read it to find out!

One of my favorite books is Bat 6 by Virginia Euwer Wolff. It's 1949 and two girls' softball teams are ready for the annual Bat 6 softball tournament. Each chapter is told from the point of view of one of the girls. While the softball story is really good, what will really grab your heart is the treatment that Aki, a Japanese-American girl who plays first base, endures upon returning to town after spending several years in an internment camp. I can't tell you how it ends, but I can tell you that you'll definitely be moved by this story.

These books are available for checking out at any SSJCPL library!  (And if the one you want to read isn't on the shelf, ask library staff how to request it!) Read and enjoy! And by the way, what's your favorite baseball book?

Batter up!