Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Testing the Ice: A True Story About Jackie Robinson by Sharon Robinson

  



It was 1956.  Jackie Robinson has retired from baseball, his family lives on a farm in Connecticut with a pond, and he spends a lot of time with his family and their friends.  He tells them stories of his years in baseball and the opposition he faced.  In the winter, his children and their friends want to go ice skating so he takes them out to the lake.  But before he will let them go out he tests the ice even though he can’t swim.  His daughter, Sharon, is amazed at just how brave he was.

The author, Sharon, then goes on to compare the testing of the ice to Jackie’s Robinson’s breaking the ice (the color barrier) in baseball.  She also gives some background information about the time period.
 



On the surface this seems like a very simple story but it is actually quite deep.  I enjoyed the story and the message.  I found Sharon Robinson’s use of time a little confusing and readers would probably need some scaffolding with a timeline in order to understand the order of events.  Kadir Nelson’s pictures are beautiful.

Ribbet....

 

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